Amid growing complaints about privacy violations, Facebook says it will change its Beacon search-advertising system.

Beacon, begun earlier this month, broadcasts users' third-party purchases to other users, and thousands of Facebook users and others complained about the new advertising initiative.

"Beacon crosses the line to being Big Brother," said Charlene Li, an analyst at Forrester Research, according to the New York Times.

Responding to the furor, Facebook officials issued a statement Thursday night explaining the new privacy measures.

"Users must click on 'okay' in a new initial notification on their Facebook homepage before the first Beacon story is published to their friends from each participating site," Facebook said. "We recognize that users need to clearly understand Beacon before they first have a story published, and we will continue to refine this approach to give users choice."

Since its launch, users have complained about the difficulty in opting out of the Beacon system, which broadcasts a user's purchases to those on his or her network.

Facebook is in a tough position, because it is counting on Beacon to drive revenue growth for the company—which expects to earn only $30 million this year. Microsoft recently paid $240 million for a 1.6 percent stake, which valued Facebook at $15 billion.

The main reason Beacon had the potential to be so profitable was that it was so difficult for Facebook's 50 million users to opt out of it.

As Facebook's chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, said a few weeks ago, "There is no opting out of advertising."
 
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