"It's not spyware if the spying isn't criminally used" is one school of thought, I suppose.
Frankly I agree with the other individual that spying for reasons legal or otherwise constitutes spying enough to say the ware that does it fits the description of spyware. Idgaf if it was only spying on me in order to give me free ice cream and it just wants my favorite flavor, that is still intrusive and I don't like it. If they want to know something they can ask and if I want to tell them I will.