Many people believe that using ad blocking software like Adblock Plus is morally wrong.
Image via Wikipedia
But is it? Can using Adblock Plus on a website that operates off ads be considered stealing or of poor moral fiber?
I’m not so sure.
Consider this: I am the network administrator of Zylblog and all of its sister sites and services. The sites use Google Ads in-post relevant to the content. In essence, if I really made much money off automated ads, I would be loosing a lot of money. I don’t make a lot of money on ads since I target computer people who all use Adblock Plus (ABP) anyways.
So, do I mind that people block ads? Certainly not! Sure, it’d be nice if I made more off of effortless automated ads from Google, but I know that consumers should be able to be selective. Heck, as a college student, if I see a single advertisement for a business on a bulletin board, you can be assured that I will rip it down. Commercials make me turn the TV off.
Not only are ads annoying, they aren’t good for many reasons. They take longer to load, especially when they have images. Image ads are often inappropriate on sketchy sites (like Gamecopyworld, a good example of very bad ads). They take up space, which is especially annoying for sidebar ads when a user has a low screen resolution.
Most important in defense of software like ABP, ads are often extremely dangerous. Have you ever seen “Slow computer? Does it take more than 10 seconds to load your email? Is your Internet slow? Click here to download a program to clean up your PC.” Adware, spyware, and even viruses often follow these ads that sound so desirable. Ads lack moderation by humans and whats worse is that they target computer novices who are very likely to fall in. Ads also are created to blend into websites and look like legitimate links.
In all, Adblock Plus and other ad-blocking software are fine.
What can be done about ads?
Web designers, you can write your own ads for companies. There are tons of websites on the Internet that can connect you with businesses that want to advertise and protect you with free speech of opinion in the matter. As many of you remember, I wrote many ads for a while and I was very selective about what I accepted. I didn’t write ads that were not relevant to my users, and I always did a check on each service I would advertise to make sure they were legitimate.
Good practice to share information.
Loved your article. :)