Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

The ad-based internet is dying, and it's getting worse in the process [video]

tilvids.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

241–250 of 856 posts

Re: The ad-based internet is dying, and it's getting worse in the process [video]

#241

Post by drdeca »

skydhash wrote: post #137
jhaenchen wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The real issue IMO is that users do not understand that ads pay for their apps. They don't want to see ads and the ads they do see they want them to be uninformed and general. They want everything free. This just encourages subscriptions. Which we're seeing become more and more common.

> The real issue IMO is that users do not understand that ads pay for their apps Because it does not make any sense. No one wants to be shown something he does not find interesting or important, even if they say that they will. So if you believe people should watch, read, or listen to your ads, you've been living in a bubble. > They want everything free. It would be nice if everything were free, but only small childr…

> If they don't use something unless it's free, that's because its value is 0.

I'd say that it is because the value is less than the transaction cost of any payment, not zero.

Re: The ad-based internet is dying, and it's getting worse in the process [video]

#242

Post by Minor49er »

aurizon wrote: post #85

My Ad-Antibodies have become stronger with time, even as the click baits proliferate. Anything that shows a morsel = click for next = I am gone. Some ads are tolerable - I endure, some throw up such a ticket = gone. Any site that asks me = gone...

When I am presented with an obtrusive popup to sign up for some website, I've been in the habit of just filling it in with a random email address pointed at the site's own domain. Funnily enough, some sites will stop you from submitting an email address associated with the current domain because even they know how annoying and unpleasant they are

Re: The ad-based internet is dying, and it's getting worse in the process [video]

#243

Post by russh »

nonameiguess wrote: post #203
AltruisticGapHN wrote: post #188

I agree with recent TWiT discussion on this : we've had it good for a while - the promise of free internet but all those services cost money to keep running. I don't have an issue with paying Youtube Premium Lite. Where I have an issue with the subs model is you're pay subs to so many services, YT Netflix Twitch, etc. It adds up pretty quickly, and costs way more than traditional TV used to cost. Then there's the iss…

I can't agree that it costs more. I'm a pretty profligate spender and just subscribe to everything even though I don't actually watch that much television. So right now, my household is subscribed to YouTube Premium, Peacock, Paramount+, Disney+, Max, Apple TV+, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, and Curiosity Stream. I'm honestly not even sure what it costs, but guessing somewhere in the arena of $10 a month or so on aver…

This is my experience as well. We have at least 6 streaming services and it’s still $100/mo cheaper than my direct tv bill.

Re: The ad-based internet is dying, and it's getting worse in the process [video]

#245

Post by code_duck »

ajmurmann wrote: post #140
AndrewKemendo wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

TikTok and IG continue to see good ad rev growth

It's interesting that those aren't really available on the open web and require the app.

Instagram can be accessed with a web browser.

Re: The ad-based internet is dying, and it's getting worse in the process [video]

#246

Post by code_duck »

commandlinefan wrote: post #240
RandallFlagg wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would personally prefer to pay for a service with my money as opposed to my information and ads being shoved in my face. Unfortunately many services don't even give an option to pay with money, so I've been trying to find alternatives, for example I've been starting to migrate away from Gmail to Protonmail. I understand things cost money, so let me pay you for your services. I just despise ads with a passion.

> prefer to pay for a service There was a comic (an Oatmeal comic, IIRC) where the guy goes into Starbucks and orders a $5.00 coffee, and then while drinking it picks up his phone and it asks him to pay $1.00 to access a news article and he says, "$1.00! Who do they think I am, Mark Zuckerberg?" (or something like that). While I get the _sentiment_ behind it (especially from a webcomic guy who's producing entertainin…

>a webcomic guy who's producing entertaining content and not getting anything back from it

I wouldn’t exactly say he’s not getting anything from it. Per Wikipedia,

>Inman said in 2012 that The Oatmeal had a revenue of $500,000 a year.

Re: The ad-based internet is dying, and it's getting worse in the process [video]

#247

Post by bad_username »

makestuff wrote: post #63
baron816 wrote: post #9

I think we really need microtransactions. Pay $0.05 to read this article? Sure. Whoever figures out the infrastructure for that (seems like it would be right up Stripe’s alley) is going to make trillions.

The reason why ads work is consumers do not want to spend money now that they are conditioned to get stuff on the internet for free. Every time an article on here is posted the first comment is a link to archive.is. I agree this would be a better model, but I don’t think it will ever happen. Maybe the Web3 stuff will catch on and this will become sustainable.

I think consumers are not reluctant to spend money. They are just averse to the friction of doing the paying. If nanopayments for e.g. reading a news article could become totally automated and transparent, I think this would work.

Re: The ad-based internet is dying, and it's getting worse in the process [video]

#248

Post by JohnFen »

coding123 wrote: post #238
SoftTalker wrote: post #223

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A problem with many paid services is that they still have ads. Was watching something with my wife the other day (I think it was on HBO streaming) and there were ads? I'm like "hang on we're paying for this, and still have to watch ads?"

It's almost like Unions of the 1950s was for workers. Its 2023 and now we need Unions for consumers.

Interestingly enough, Consumers Union -- the nonprofit that publishes Consumer Reports -- was started by striking workers in the mid 1930s for just this purpose.

Re: The ad-based internet is dying, and it's getting worse in the process [video]

#249

Post by JohnFen »

spacemadness wrote: post #200
Medh_Suk wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Marketers have ruined internet with deceptive and click baity ads. I dont have a problem with ads, just dont sell my data to everyone who knocks on your companies doors. Happy to support ethical ads. Twitter ads are aweful, showing unknown, click bait ads on its platform.

It’s interesting we hear a lot about how engineers need to understand ethics, but nobody says a peep about the field of marketing which focuses on psychological manipulation and deception.

I think that's because everyone already knows that the marketing field is slimy and don't expect differently from it. There is still hope for devs, though.

Re: The ad-based internet is dying, and it's getting worse in the process [video]

#250

Post by marcosdumay »

Ads aren't going anywhere.

But the idea that ads can be the largest market segment on Earth and support most of our largest companies, with profit margins that shields those companies from even thinking about money... well, that was always bullshit.

Those companies were propelled there by a lot of investment money, gave for free to investors with taxpayers bearing the costs everywhere. That money is gone, and without enough thrust, pigs can't keep flying.

Post reply on HN