Alternatively, the Faustian bargin we made with the FAANGs was that we would provide our data and they would give us useful ads.
If I bought a nice leather belt, perhaps I should get ads for nicer leather shoes or some other item, maybe a leather polish/waterproofing kit to keep my belt nice and new. The failure of the Advertising-Industrial complex in that regard has been disappointing to say the least.
To do that you have to give up more information about what you actually bought which IMO is an even bigger privacy issue than what we're currently giving away.
I think it's reasonable for the ad industry to assume that you bought the belt once you abruptly stopped showing interest in comparing belts for a couple of days. No access to purchase history needed.
If I bought a nice leather belt, perhaps I should get ads for nicer leather shoes or some other item, maybe a leather polish/waterproofing kit to keep my belt nice and new. The failure of the Advertising-Industrial complex in that regard has been disappointing to say the least.