I also read the article on Google/Microsoft and your Health Records a couple days ago and was very shocked by the idea of Google or Microsoft having some control/management of one's medical records. After reading this article I was curious about medical advertising on the web- this led me to WebMD (which I admit I am a frequent user and I wonder what info they have gathered on me)
WebMD, a website that is a medical and wellness information service, primarily known for its public Internet site, which provides health information, a symptom checklist, pharmacy information, blogs of physicians with specific topics and a place to store personal medical information. In an article posted on their site , http://www.webmd.com/content/article/105/107785.htm, WebMD discusses problems and issues with its advertising.
WebMD, unlike other medical information , WebMD is not funded and controlled by the government, a university, or a health association, nor does it charge users a subscription fee. Therefore its business model is advertising! the article listed above is a response from WebMD to a complaint filed by a nurse that was very offended by an advertisement for Baby Formula that popped up while viewing an article on Breastfeeding. She thought this was inappropriate.
Additionally, there are many sensitive issues that WebMD must consider when placing their advertisements- WebMD is in fact mindful of such concerns. The company compiles a list of "sensitive" topics such as mental retardation, suicide, and childhood genetic diseases, next to which certain advertising is off limits. For instance, ads about weight loss plans aren't run next to articles about eating disorders or cancer; ads about fertility treatments don't appear alongside information about miscarriage.
This consideration is very interesting and important. Without these considerations, WebMD's entire business model could be in jeopardy (advertisers want to reach potential users but do not want to alienate people). However what offends one person can vary from person to person. How does WebMD determine the limits?
WebMD's advertising policy states it "will not accept advertising that, in WebMD's opinion, is not factually accurate and in good taste." Who determines this? Again people can offended by some many different things concerning medical issues.
Additionally, WebMD users reported annoyance with the ads. We have spoken about peoples tolerance for online advertising a lot in class, this speaks directly to that. One user reported that "while trying to read your interesting article on exercise and diabetes, I was annoyed and distracted by an ad for an insulin pump that would not close." Said yet another: "This site went from an informative site to another site designed to promote and sell products."
If WebMD's model is advertising- and their advertisements are offending and annoying their users, how beneficial will this model continue to be? Will this business model come back to haunt them. WebMD responds in the article with "We live in a society that constantly bombards us with advertising, whether we're watching TV, surfing the web, listening to the radio, riding elevators, or shopping in stores. Holding WebMD to a different standard seems unreasonable" Interesting...
This really makes me question - is a site there to provide real information to users or to make money? (we all kPublish Postnow money is an incentive but makes you think)
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