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Mozilla to put ads in Firefox address bar suggestions

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Re: Mozilla to put ads in Firefox address bar suggestions

#102

Before you attack Mozilla….. are you using it as your primary browser? I.e are you supporting them already? Do you believe Mozilla should be able to pay its bills? If you’re not happy with this way of raising revenue, what else do you suggest?

https://assets.mozilla.net/annualreport/2019/mozilla-fdn-201...

I don't have a clue on how to read such a statement correctly. But what I am seeing there is over 800 million USD worth of revenue. For one year.

If that is not enough to build one browser that is not crammed with ads then we are all doomed anyway.

Re: Mozilla to put ads in Firefox address bar suggestions

#103
post #95
post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What salary does the CEO of Wikipedia get and would increasing their salary to "market rates" improve Wikipedia or make it more viable?

In 2019 the salary for Wikimedia Foundation's CEO was $387,770. https://meta.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_salar...

Sounds too low. They should pay more.

Re: Mozilla to put ads in Firefox address bar suggestions

#104
post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, it really sucks. I've been using Firefox for 15 years or so but this shit is just so discouraging. Can't we have one piece of good software that doesn't try to shove "relevant" "suggestions" from "trusted" "partners" down our throats? I just want a browser that isn't controlled by the ad mafia.

A browser is expensive. Currently Firefox is funded (though not controlled) by Google's Ad business. I am all for them reducing their reliance on Google's Ad business. In this sense this is a step _towards_ what you want. I really really dislike them double speaking about this though.

Why is a browser expensive? There are many great and big open source projects out there that are maintained and developed mainly by volunteers. Why can't Firefox be like this?

Re: Mozilla to put ads in Firefox address bar suggestions

#106

It’s sucky and I particularly hate ads percolating to every part if my life, BUT how are they meant to support Firefox and other software without a revenue stream? Mozilla seems to attract criticism for how they run the whole operation, I can’t tell how correct it is, but even if they run it perfectly they still need revenue.

Strange to see so many people here seemingly operating under the mistaken belief that Firefox is developed by volunteers.

They've been receiving hundreds of millions of dollars each year just for what they set as the default search engine.

https://www.ghacks.net/2021/09/17/firefox-experiment-is-test...

Re: Mozilla to put ads in Firefox address bar suggestions

#107
post #34

Meh, the feature is easily deactivable, the settings are clear and extensive. As far as ads go, it's one of the best implementations. Firefox still has no alternative in the privacy / user-centric space (don't mention Brave, I'm gonna get mad). Mozilla has done a lot for the web, I can give them some slack for exploring different revenue models. Still, I'm going to keep on eye for this kind of practices in the future…

This just makes me worry a little bit that Firefox will take a similar route to Brave and introduce multiple streams of revenue into the browser, disguised as features that the user would want. E.g. Brave Rewards, Brave VPN, Sponsored Wallpapers.

These just clog up the interface and make it feel sketchy. I just want a normal FOSS browser, but I also understand the whole financing issue.

Re: Mozilla to put ads in Firefox address bar suggestions

#108
post #34

Meh, the feature is easily deactivable, the settings are clear and extensive. As far as ads go, it's one of the best implementations. Firefox still has no alternative in the privacy / user-centric space (don't mention Brave, I'm gonna get mad). Mozilla has done a lot for the web, I can give them some slack for exploring different revenue models. Still, I'm going to keep on eye for this kind of practices in the future…

Outsider here: whats wrong with brave? I haven’t touched it but have no reason to distrust it, happy for you to change that for me though

Brave's business model is that they bribe you with company scrip ("crypto" "currency") to undergo brainwashing (watch ads), what's not wrong with that?

Re: Mozilla to put ads in Firefox address bar suggestions

#109
post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, it really sucks. I've been using Firefox for 15 years or so but this shit is just so discouraging. Can't we have one piece of good software that doesn't try to shove "relevant" "suggestions" from "trusted" "partners" down our throats? I just want a browser that isn't controlled by the ad mafia.

> Can't we have one piece of good software that doesn't try to shove "relevant" "suggestions" from "trusted" "partners" down our throats? A few don't, like VLC: https://www.reddit.com/r/bestof/comments/73dafr/vlc_creator_...

Neutral FYI: VLC on OSX had unremovable sponsored radio/podcasts in its sidebar last time I used it

Re: Mozilla to put ads in Firefox address bar suggestions

#110
Who the heck makes these decisions?

The one asset they have or at least had was being the privacy sensitive good guys! Why not build on that?

Building yet another browser just for privacy might not have been the right move (firefox klar on android), but at least the right direction and a good experiment.

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