[jonbronson]

The real question is, did they decide not to because they realized it was unethical? Or because they felt it was too risky to public perception?

[hackinthebochs]

I don't get this obsession with ethics (in terms of correct motives) from companies. Why does the thought process behind the behavior matter when it comes to a public company, over and above the behavior itself? The fact that the company is responsive to public opinion should the goal.

[DaiPlusPlus]

Act too unethically and with popular opinion against you you’ll quickly find legislation against your interests.

[ardy42]

> I don't get this obsession with ethics (in terms of correct motives) from companies. Why does the thought process behind the behavior matter when it comes to a public company, over and above the behavior itself?

Because people want to evaluate the company's trustworthiness (or more precisely, the trustworthiness of its leaders and culture).

In this case, if they refrained from selling data due to ethical principles, you can put more trust in them, at least for a little while. If they only refrained because they didn't think they could get away with it now, they'll probably sell your data the first chance they get, so you can't trust them as much.

However, Facebook's already clearly demonstrated its' true colors many, many times, so it's kinda a waste of effort to reevaluate it.

[miketery]

Most likely they realized it wasn't as profitable when compared to other options.