Seems to me the irresponsibile thing too many of our society do is put too much stock in the marketeers. I usually select products on their merits, not on the marketing. Maybe you do too. But the marketing works, and companies have to use it to stay profitable.

I don't think you can make a hard and fast rule about this sort of thing. The problem isn't just marketing hype. The problem is that the claims fv is making about competing systems border on misrepresentation. When a company does something you believe is unethical, what do you do? It depends on how much better their product is than the other guys', how badly you need it, and how offensive you find their actions. I'm not as bothered by the incident as many here are; I tend to attribute it to panic on their part as it becomes increasingly clear that credit card numbers transmitted via ssl web servers will be the first standard for online commerce. Marketing is important, and it can do a lot for a compnay. But I don't think it will be able to prop up fv over the long run. Suppose you want to buy some information off of a web page. You can either give your cc number via ssl, or go out and create a fv account, then come back and buy whatever it is you wanted. Which one are you going to do?