On Thursday, everyone on America Online's Instant Messenger service received two new friends they didn't ask for: a ShoppingBuddy and a Moviefone bot, automated programs that send preprogrammed
responses to queries about shopping and movies. The services, which might actually be helpful, fired up many AIM users who complained on blogs and message boards that the move was "uncool" and
"intrusive." Said one angry customer: "I don't need some 'shopping buddy' to automatically add themselves and promote buying over their network. Someone missed the ethics boat on this one." AOL reps
admitted that response to the bots have been mixed, but were quick to add that they're very easy to get rid of.
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