LOS ANGELES — Twitter wants to guide new hatchlings as they venture out of the virtual nest with its experimental tailored suggestions of whom to follow. This personalization comes on the heels of the company’s confirming that users also have the option to beg off having their online movements followed for such personalization.
“Today’s experiment in providing tailored suggestions lets novice users go from zero to pro faster and more easily than ever before,” wrote Othman Laraki, Twitter’s director of global growth.
Last week, at an Internet Week panel in New York, the Federal Trade Commission’s chief tech officer, Ed Felten, revealed that Twitter supports Mozilla’s efforts to allow users more control over which sites track their moves online.
Twitter said it is basing the suggestions on accounts other users follow and on visits to websites in the “Twitter ecosystem,” including sites with integrated Twitter buttons or widgets.
That includes sites such as , which has a “tweet” button over nearly every story. In essence, where you go — if there’s a Twitter button or widget — helps Twitter form recommendations for other users.
So it’s a choice here, as with most online hangouts, for privacy or personalization.
Felton in his remarks gave an early nod to Twitter’s pending announcement about the tailored suggestions, which affirmed users’ ability to opt out through the Do Not Track feature.
