Does Zillow's recent leverage of the Follow Up Boss (FUB) acquisition inflict stellar damage on 100,000+ real estate agents? Has big-tech been thriving on "thin" class-action settlements that only incentivize highly monetized "data-grabs"?

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Like a 100,000 other real estate professionals, we have leveraged the Follow Up Boss CRM since 2013.  We invested significantly to build our database of 13,000+ records over the last 27 years. Zillow's recent acquisition of FUB has become a concern for many who use/used Follow Up Boss where agents stored independent lead and personal data since 2011. If you use or have used FUB, that data is now working against you. It's not "your" data any longer. Would Zillow clarify the acquisition and transition of Follow Up Boss (FUB) after the fact? No, they will not. Zillow will support agents with "scripted" replies and reference their privacy policy as a "Bible."

FUB includes historical "Notes", company IDX traffic insights, email campaigns, personal communications, personal email account integration, recorded phone conversations, direct marketing intel, etc. for every lead WE created. Most of our data is mainly independent, and was created by our firm, not Zillow. Zillow now possesses most of our independent data (that Zillow was oblivious to) because an email address in our database matches a user's email address on Zillow. What Zillow is calling a "mutual lead". 

We received numerous written reassurances that "our" CRM data in Follow Up Boss would stay “private” and not "shared" with Zillow. In my opinion, that turned into bait-and-switch to ensure they received mass quantities of data when the time was right. Media debunking this data-grab seem misinformed or incentivized. Today, there is no reason to use FUB at all, it's just a CRM for Zillow. You've been "snookered" if they misled you too. Zillow will tell you that your independent leads (new leads) are not shared with Zillow, but at any moment in time an "independent" email address of yours will eventually match Zillow's. Then Zillow will automatically take your data without notice. Zillow wasn't interested in great agents. They were only interested in their data because they have the most.

The time of year, and limited time to migrate our Follow Up Boss to a different CRM leaves much to the imagination for 100,000 FUB users. Notice of the updated privacy policy came in late October, and went in to effect November 15th. AYFKM? Does Zillow and FUB understand it would take many months to transition to a new CRM giving the complexity many users have with tied services in FUB? I think so; maybe 100%. Maybe the holiday time of year, coupled with misrepresentations, had more intent than anything "possible" for the agent. Agents tend to differentiated themselves from other organizations - including Zillow.  Zillow just "upped" their game in every MLS, on the agent's dime. Agents are now a Zillow's "product," for Zillow's profit only. Many just paid with their "career investment" for Zillow to compete with themselves. Full stop.

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Does Zillow's recent leverage of the Follow Up Boss (FUB) acquisition inflict stellar damage on 100,000+ real estate agents? Has big-tech been thriving on "thin" class-action settlements that only incentivize highly monetized "data-grabs"?

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