The Hidden Algorithm Deciding What You Pay

About this episode

This episode discusses surveillance pricing and its implications on consumer behavior with guest Vass Bednar.

What if companies could figure out the exact maximum you’re willing to pay, and charge you exactly that? That’s the promise of surveillance pricing: using your personal data, purchase history, location, online behavior, and even financial information to tailor prices specifically to you. In this episode, Cara Stern talks with Vass Bednar, managing director of the Canadian Shield Institute and author of The Big Fix, about why this issue is suddenly on the political agenda in Canada, and what...

People in this episode

Host: Cara Stern

Guest: Vass Bednar

Topics covered

• surveillance pricing
• personal data
• political agenda
• consumer behavior
• pricing strategies

Keywords

• surveillance pricing
• personal data
• purchase history
• location
• online behavior
• financial information

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Canadian Shield Institute

Books & works: The Big Fix

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