14 DAY TRIAL // Anything that Facebook changes about the site, the apps and especially its terms of service, gets some people riled up. Many times it's over trivial issues, sometimes it's over serious ones.
The fact that all get the same response from mostly the same people doesn't help when there are legitimate concerns.
Still, it does look like Facebook listens sometimes. Back in August, the company announced that it wanted to make some changes to its policy documents governing the site's responsibilities and privacy issues.
Among the most controversial proposals was a line which implied that any minor using the site had full permission from their parents or guardians for their photos and data to be used in ads.
That wasn't the only concerning proposed change, but it was certainly the one that got the most attention.
The new policy documents are going live and taking effect today, but they haven't made it through the past few months completely unchanged.
The line about teen ads is now gone, and Facebook is claiming that none of the changes apply to ads in any way.
"We want you to know that nothing about this update has changed our advertising policies and practices. We heard this question a lot so we want to be clear. The goal of the update was to clarify language, not to change policies or practices," Facebook explained.
That may very well be true, but it doesn't change the fact that those, now clearer, policies and practices were worrying to some people. With regards to the part about teens consenting to the policies, Facebook had this to say:
"We added a sentence that said if you are under the age of eighteen you have talked to your parent or guardian and they also agree to some of our terms," the company explained.
"This language was about getting a conversation started; we were not seeking and would not have gained any additional rights as a result of this addition. We received feedback, though, that the language was confusing and so we removed the sentence," it added.