image source: Getty/Wired
This weekend in advertising: a great deal has been made out of iOS9’s support of ad blocking software. Recently, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau, ad blocking has become so popular that it’s damaging content creators. As Matt Yglesias notes on Vox:
The dispute is about software. Specifically about “extensions” that can be added to (some) web browsers and about JavaScript that runs as part of (some) web ads. It’s a discussion that’s been running for a long time, but has kicked into overdrive because of Apple’s release of a new operating system for iPhones and the launch of new services like Facebook Instant Articles and Apple News. And it’s something you’ll be hearing more and more about if you read things online, because it touches on something very near and dear to every online writer’s heart — whether we can make money publishing on the internet, and the sneaking suspicion that the reasonably journalist-friendly economic climate of the past two or three years may be a mirage.
As increasing numbers of internet users access the internet with ad blockers installed, dealing with this trend is a new challenge for ad creators and hosts. For more articles and commentary for and against blocking, check out Vox’s article.