Hm, I'm not gonna fight over how benevolent or evil facebook is, but my - obviously incorrect - observation is that tech-minded people are scared away, because they're aware of how much personal information facebook and similar services are raking in and, more importantly, what can be done with it without users knowing it. Not only now, but in a few years from now when harvesting and correlating technologies have evolved. Don't forget about recent improvements in artificial intelligence as well.

I'm all for social media. I think it's great! But I personally will not trust advertising companies with my personal messages. There are decentralized, open alternatives however. Unfortunately none of them seems to be gaining a significant following, except one: status.net. And to get back on topic, Jolla does have an identi.ca account, and I'm pondering whether I should get one too or set up my own status.net service.