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Am I the only one who thinks THAT is a dark pattern? It would at a minimum, confuse me, if I had a different UI / feature set than my friend(s) - confused for being unaware why my experience looks different, and you better bet that 90%+ of users do not know what an A/B test is. At worst, I'm angry because they are getting a better experience and I randomly got shafted with no ability to upgrade.

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That's the same kind of thinking that would criticize pharmaceutical companies for giving placebos. They do it because they don't know with confidence, and they want to. They are collecting evidence.

To get into a medical trial you a) know it's a trial b) get informed that you might get a placebo c) consent to participate in the trial.

If a pharmaceutical company was discovered filling 30% of pill bottles they sent to pharmacies with placebos, they'd be sued unto the eighth generation.

Why is a long-term holdback ethically questionable in a way standard a/b testing is not?

Maybe that’s undesirable. I don’t think it’s a dark pattern as it isn’t about manipulating/tricking people into doing what you want.

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