Facebook bids to quell user anger over policy change

Concerns among Facebook users who upload photographs on the social network have been mounting over with Instagram, which Facebook bought earlier this year, using the photographs in ads to make money.

Last evening, the complaints, which included angry tweets and images on Instagram protesting the changes, triggered action. Kevin Systrom, a co-founder of Instagram, wrote in a blog post that the company would change the new terms of service to make clearer what would happen to users' pictures.

"We've heard loud and clear that many users are confused and upset about what the changes mean," he wrote. "I'm writing this today to let you know we're listening and to commit to you that we will be doing more to answer your questions, fix any mistakes, and eliminate the confusion."

According to Eric Goldman, an associate professor at the Santa Clara University School of Law, the face off between Facebook and its users formed part of the sometimes uneasy relationship between companies offering free online services and their eventual need to turn a profit from them.

He said the interest of the site was never in 100 per cent alignment with the users and the divergence inevitably led to friction. He said it was unavoidable.

Instagram users around 100 million strong now - snap the photos on their smartphones, enhance them with digital filters and then instantly share them with friends.