latest
Google's issue with excessive advertisements is only growing worse
Google's obnoxious commercials are getting out of hand
Almost every aspect of the internet is viable for advertisements, whether presented through static images, video messages, or sponsored content. Ads can be an engagement-driven source of revenue for free apps and services, and they're great for amateur developers looking to get risky projects off the ground, which can be pretty challenging for obscure ideas.
Google's latest Play Store search tweak has some users seeing double
A search tab with a search bar at the top of the page?
Google uses the Play Store to give us the best apps on Android in a reliable and secure manner, but with the Play Store pre-installed on virtually every Android device, the company also has massive monetization opportunities right there. We started seeing sponsored app placements in the search suggestions field on the Play Store app for Android earlier this year, but someone at Google may have had a brainwave because a whole search page has been spotted in the wild during testing.
Android TV is aggressively promoting Google's free streaming channels
Your favorites row has now been invaded by ads
Ads are creeping into our day-to-day lives from every angle, and even with our best efforts, they are hard to avoid sometimes. While paying top-dollar for major subscription-based streaming services like Netflix will get rid of most, if not all, of the ads you’re bound to see, it may not be feasible to spend tons of money on many, if not even one, streaming service out there. Now, it seems like it doesn’t just branch out to streaming services alone, as streaming and smart devices have ads preinstalled in their operating system. They’re getting awful, and now Google TV is aggressively promoting its free, but ad-based, streaming channels by injecting them into your favorites row.
YouTube just made it harder to avoid ads with a tiny skip button
Witnessing a widespread release after initial testing
The biggest uphill battle for ad-supported entertainment apps ought to be ad blockers and account sharing. Netflix fought the latter with strict measures and more recently, YouTube has stepped up its fight against ad blocker utilities on all platforms. Mercifully, the platform still allows you to skip ads after watching the first few seconds. A recent change to the Skip button may not be to everyone’s taste, though.
WhatsApp seems set on introducing ads, but they won't appear in your inbox
Meta's dream of monetizing WhatsApp could finally become a reality
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, also owns WhatsApp, the instant messaging app known for its end-to-end encryption. While Instagram and Facebook have become known for their advertisements, WhatsApp has stayed away from them for the most part, but this could change. WhatsApp head Will Cathcart has now confirmed that ads aren’t entirely out of the question.
How to disable Google Chrome's targeted ad tracking
Turn off Google's Topics API to preserve your privacy
Google released Topics, a browser-based API (as part of its Privacy Sandbox initiative) during July's Chrome 115 update. Google designed the API to replace third-party cookies and still preserve privacy while allowing a browser to share information with third parties about a user's interests. Essentially, Google believes introducing the Topics API into your browser settings will increase transparency and control over what information gets shared (for personalized ads). However, even with these improvements to online privacy, it still doesn't prevent your data from being collected and shared.
Privacy Sandbox pushes cookies to the back burner in Google Chrome
Advertisers still get your data, but you get a little more control
The elimination of third-party cookies in some browsers has inevitably made it more challenging for advertisers to reach their target audience. However, navigating the web hasn’t become any less frustrating with widespread cookie consent forms becoming the norm. Now, advertisers are looking for new ways to make sure their content is seen, and big tech companies are lending a hand. With the latest Chrome update, Google has made its Privacy Sandbox widely available to help businesses deliver ads more effectively — oh, and also to give users a touch more control over their personal data than tracking cookies afforded.
Google will require political advertisers to disclose synthetic content
The requirement is meant to curb misinformation ahead of the US presidential election
With more people discovering new uses for generative AI, concerns about how it might be leveraged for unethical purposes are beginning to grow. As the 2024 US presidential election looms, digital platforms are looking at ways to protect users from exposure to misinformation. AI is undoubtedly making it harder to do, blurring the lines between fact and fiction across the internet. Now, Google has updated its political content policy to deliver more transparency in this area, and it will directly impact advertisers.
For those who don't have Premium or an ad blocker, it's hard to find a button more pressed on YouTube than that one that says "skip ads." Many of us have trained ourselves to hit this button the very moment it appears, shaving precious seconds off the time spent waiting to watch the actual content. Recently, YouTube has been testing changes to the look of this button, and it may get harder to press soon.
Google Play Store starts running full-on ads in search suggestions
First they were recommendations, now they’re just ads
Back in November, many users started seeing targeted promos for apps when they opened the Play Store’s search menu on Android, but Google assured us at the time that these weren’t ads — merely proactive recommendations for apps you might be interested in, given to you at an opportune time when you might have been looking for them anyway. Now, a new plague of Play Store search ads is cropping up for many users, and this time they're just that — ads.
Advertising takes many forms, and some of them are acceptable, but most are ugly and unwanted. Even the best streaming devices carry operating system-level ads. We don’t mind seeing promoted content like movies and TV shows, even if they aren’t tailored to our watch history. But when the same space is used for advertising physical products, the TV resembles a billboard you willingly paid for. Ads on Google TV caught our attention late in January, but they only seem to grow worse as time passes.
Disney Plus ad-supported tier may not let you use SharePlay and GroupWatch
Binge in solitude, with ads for company
Streaming platforms want two things: as big an audience as possible, and to collect as much money from that audience as they can. When people stop wanting to sign up and pay, introducing an ad-supported tier can be one way to continue fueling growth. That's exactly why Hulu and HBO Max have their own such tiers, Netflix is just about to follow up with one of its own, and Disney Plus is due to launch its offering before the year's out. Early details about that new Disney Plus tier are trickling in, and it looks like ad-supported viewers might end up missing out on some features.
You can't spend long on the internet without seeing people fretting over how much data "big tech" has on us, but that's nothing compared to ISPs and mobile carriers. These companies see a lot more of your data, and they're not shy about monetizing it. T-Mobile has a history of taking liberties with your data, and it's not slowing down now that it has digested Sprint. T-Mobile has just officially launched its new ad platform, known as T-Mobile Advertising Solutions. That innocuous name hides a rather sketchy business model—it aggregates your mobile application usage and sells it to advertisers.
Google will give you more choice over the ads you see with My Ad Center
The new tool will help you manage how ads are personalized to you later this year
Google's on a privacy bender at its Google I/O developer conference, highlighting how it's working to keep your data private. Of course, this affects ads, which aren't just Google's bread and butter, but the mechanism that keeps most of the internet running. Personalized ads have always felt a little skeevy, but Google's rolling out a tool later this year called My Ad Center that will let you fine-tune the sorts of ads you don't want to see and opt-in if there are specific subjects you do want to see more ads for.
Google won't help sell ads beside content downplaying or dismissing Russia-Ukraine war
The search giant is applying rules that were already in place
Big tech companies like Google and Apple haven't backed away from the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. Many have pulled or limited services to Russia, up to shutting down the ability for Russian consumers to buy their products. One of the most recent measures demonstrates just how much power one of the tech giants can wield, as Google has said it will not allow ads that exploit the war — or that assist Russia — to play on websites, apps, or YouTube channels.
Google is taking a page out of Apple’s book today, with a more developer-friendly and open twist: Privacy Sandbox is coming to Android from Chrome to help reign in mobile advertisers. Rather than being a blanket “ask app not to track” user-facing opt-in, though, Google wants to work with developers to figure out a more sustainable approach, dangling a carrot for their involvement now before it starts swinging a bigger enforcement stick later.
Lizzo helps Google show why Real Tone on the Pixel 6 matters in moving Super Bowl ad
Look for the clip during the big game on Feb. 13
With the introduction of Real Tone for the Pixel 6's cameras, Google took an important step towards making sure its smartphone user experience was consistently great, no matter who you are or what you look like. There's a powerful message about inclusivity there, so it's little surprise that Google's turning to maybe the biggest television event of the year to get the word out. Ahead of the Super Bowl this weekend, Google's giving us an early look at its new Real Tone ad featuring Grammy-winner Lizzo.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai was aware of anti-competitive ads deal with Facebook, Texas AG alleges
Meta's Zuckerberg and Sandberg also knew about 'Jedi Blue'
Court filings from the Texas attorney general's office which have just been unsealed allege that top executives at Google and Facebook (now Meta) knew of and supported a deal that gave the social media giant a sweetheart deal on internet ads. They're the latest revelation in the midst of a multi-state antitrust lawsuit against the search giant.
Twitter's new reply-guy take on ads might earn you a bit of cash for those spicy tweets
You'll soon see some ads scattered between a tweet's replies
We're used to ads being part of our daily lives. As long as they're not overly invasive or try to install crap on our phones, we have no problem with them by now for the most part. Twitter shoves ads on you as well, but generally, you'll get them while you scroll down your Twitter feed integrated among other tweets from people you follow. The company is now considering adding ads to tweet conversations, as well, although there's a slight twist that you might like — if you're the original tweet's author, at least.
Apps are using scummy ads to bypass Google Play and install without your consent
Just in case full-screen ads weren't invasive enough
Ads on Android devices are already annoying enough. Playing the "free" version of certain games gets you a full-screen ad every time you change levels or die. But so far, scummy ads have mostly been contained to their own, scummy sandbox where they can't get out unless you tap them. Today, though, they're crossing a new line, as a growing number of reports reveals efforts to install apps without user intervetion nor Play Store notifcation.