Facebook changed its terms two weeks ago with the stated motive of clarity. But the change did away with a provision that allowed users to remove their content at any time, limiting Facebook's license. With the change, Facebook would have the right to continue to use members' content even if accounts were terminated.

"Over the past couple of days, we received a lot of questions and comments about the changes and what they mean for people and their information," said Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook's CEO. "Based on this feedback, we have decided to return to our previous terms of use while we resolve the issues that people have raised."

Zuckerberg Spins the Story

in a late-night blog post, Zuckerberg shared how the Facebook staff spent most of Tuesday discussing how best to move forward. Facebook considered amending the new terms with new language to further clarify its position. The company also considered reverting back to its old terms while it works on a new version. The latter suggestion won out.

"More than 175 million people use Facebook. If it were a country, it would be the sixth most populated country in the world. Our terms aren't just a document that protect our rights; it's the governing document for how the service is used by everyone across the world," Zuckerberg said. "Given its importance, we need to make sure the terms reflect the principles and values of the people using the service."

Zuckerberg promised that the next version of Facebook's terms of use will be a substantial revision that reflects how people share and control their information -- and it will be written clearly in language everyone can understand. He also promised Facebook users will have a lot of input in crafting these terms and invited members to start posting questions, comments and requests in the Facebook Bill of Rights and Responsibilities group.

On the Radar Screen

Historically, companies could update their terms of use or privacy policy under the radar because consumers either weren't paying attention or didn't understand the language in the policy, according do Alissa Cooper, chief computer scientist at the Center for Democracy and Technology.

"What you are starting to see with platforms like Facebook is people are engaged and recognize their own interest in being able to control their data, so these sorts of changes are becoming 100 percent material to the way that people feel about the service," Cooper said.

"The service also provides someone a platform to complain when they are not happy. Those two dynamics combined mean that the old paradigm of changing your policy on the fly and under the radar without anyone noticing is starting to shift," Cooper added. "Anything online companies can do to be more transparent and write in terms of service in plain language will help people with those kinds of decisions that they are now faced with on a constant basis."