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Spotify will now suspend or terminate accounts it finds are using ad blockers

techcrunch.com

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Re: Spotify will now suspend or terminate accounts it finds are using ad blockers

#811

Post by zormino »

Wowfunhappy wrote: post #275
enraged_camel wrote: post #234

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>>Perhaps the reason you're using an ad-blocker is because you don't want to be tracked I use adblockers to protect myself against malicious content masquerading as ads, which both the ad delivery networks and content platforms have proven unwilling or unable to address to an acceptable extent.

I honestly don't consider this particularly relevant, especially in the case of Spotify which has a paid ad-free option (as opposed to something like cnn.com, where you don't have a choice). If you want to boycott Spotify for endangering people's computers, go ahead. Heck, if you want to attempt to use Spotify with an ad-blocker, go ahead. I don't feel morally comfortable using ad-blockers, but I won't fault others f…

Completely agree. Spotify offers two options: free with ads, or paid with no ads. Completely up to you which one to go with. If you don't like ads they have and option for you. I don't like ads either, and I use an adblocker to block tracking and protect against malware. I also want to use Spotify. So I pay for it. How self righteous do you have to be to complain about this? If you don't like Spotify's model, don't use the service. It's a perfectly valid option, and there are plenty of alternatives.

Re: Spotify will now suspend or terminate accounts it finds are using ad blockers

#812

Post by charlesdm »

nojvek wrote: post #796
heynk wrote: post #510

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've paid for Spotify for a while, so its been some time since I've heard an ad. But from what I remember, if you put the volume below ~30%, the ad pauses.

Yeah it was black mirror style. You had to listen to the goddamn ad. I used to take off the earphones when the ad played. It was an annoying enough experience. Although I mostly upgraded to paid option for the high bit rate audio. Music sounds so much crispier. Making users pay for no ads may not be enough to nudge them over. Offering a premium pro is definitely a viable model.

Can't have it all for free. I've been a paying user for nearly 8 years. And I love it.

Re: Spotify will now suspend or terminate accounts it finds are using ad blockers

#813

Post by hanspeter »

jsgo wrote: post #726
baddox wrote: post #649

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe I have the right to choose whenever possible which resources my computer downloads and what code my computer executes. That includes selecting which parts of a specific website or application I download and execute. If Spotify wants to refuse to fulfill requests for one resource (e.g. songs) separate from requests for another resource (e.g. ads), I have absolutely no problem with that. But if Spotify choose…

You get married. The agreement between you and your significant other is that both parties will be faithful and to perform various duties within the relationship. Also, if the marriage is ended, both parties leave with their individual things/pay/etc. You decide to play the field. Your significant other decides to leave you and you are now responsible for the tasks/financials that your significant other previously as…

Can you point to the part of the Spotify ToC, where you agree not to block ads? I haven't been able to find anything about it.

Re: Spotify will now suspend or terminate accounts it finds are using ad blockers

#814

Post by calvertdw »

SnowingXIV wrote: post #118

Long time premium spotify user, but it seems they are more interested in their ad-tech than anything else. They introduce 0 new features or improvements and in fact actually remove things over time. It's amazing to see a product continue to get worse. Before you could send your friends a message within Spotify to send a song for them to listen while in the application and could even carry on a discussion. It was slic…

One feature I loved when I first joined Spotify was syncing two devices to play in sync. Wouldn't that be a game changer to have back. RIP Sonos.

Re: Spotify will now suspend or terminate accounts it finds are using ad blockers

#815

Post by stevenwliao »

paxys wrote: post #779
cletus wrote: post #255

Good. Spotify has a pretty cheap paid option that removes all of that. To those who justify wanting the paid service for nothing by saying Spotify won't "take responsibility" or "assume liability" for their ads or those ads "might deliver malware" or are "intrusive" as a weak rationalization, you present a false dichotomy. There are at least three options: 1. Pay for the service 2. Suffer through the ads 3. Don't use…

It's funny because whenever the adblock discussion comes up the standard argument is always "why can't the site have a paid subscription option? I would gladly pay for it." Now that a service is offering subscriptions, people still don't want to pay for it, and the goalposts are shifted further.

> Why can't they offer it for $8/month?

After a price drop...

> Why can't they offer it for $5/month?

Another price drop.

> Subscriptions are expensive. Why can't they offer a free plan?

A free plan is released, with ads.

> Why can't they offer it for free with less ads?

Ad density is reduced.

> Why can't they offer it for free with no ads?

> I don't want all these songs. Why can't they have an a la carte option?

A la carte option has existed for a while, but company gives it a marketing rebranding.

> These a la carte songs are kind of pricey. Why can't they be $0.80?

> $0.50?

> They're just bits. Bits want to be free.

> Why are you ignoring your loyal potential customers? I'm going to stop pirating your product and tell everyone I know to avoid you.

Re: Spotify will now suspend or terminate accounts it finds are using ad blockers

#818

Post by NoodleIncident »

heynk wrote: post #510
judge2020 wrote: post #438

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They already do this, there are constant interruptions for 30-second audio ads. Currently, you can turn the audio down, but I wouldn't be surprised if they do something akin to the black mirror episode "fifteen million merits" where you have to look at/listen to the ads for them to go away. The main gripe is using adsense which can still often be used to deliver malware.

I've paid for Spotify for a while, so its been some time since I've heard an ad. But from what I remember, if you put the volume below ~30%, the ad pauses.

I've never had issues on Mac, Windows, or Linux with the operating system's mute stopping ad playback.

On a related note, Spotify's volume controls should never be touched, because no matter what you set the music volume to, ads will play at full volume. It's usually louder than the music anyway, but the damage to your ears can be minimized.

Re: Spotify will now suspend or terminate accounts it finds are using ad blockers

#819

Post by dbg31415 »

I used Spotify for a few years (with an ad blocker at the DNS-level) and never heard a single ad. I was constantly blown away by how great the service was, and free! Then I was on a road trip and heard the ads on my phone because I wasn't using my at-home DNS. The ads were so annoying, came on after ever 3-4th song. Ad blockers were really effective on Spotify.

I've been a paying member for a few years now.

Curious if they will block paid users too.

Re: Spotify will now suspend or terminate accounts it finds are using ad blockers

#820

Post by jsgo »

hanspeter wrote: post #813
jsgo wrote: post #726

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You get married. The agreement between you and your significant other is that both parties will be faithful and to perform various duties within the relationship. Also, if the marriage is ended, both parties leave with their individual things/pay/etc. You decide to play the field. Your significant other decides to leave you and you are now responsible for the tasks/financials that your significant other previously as…

Can you point to the part of the Spotify ToC, where you agree not to block ads? I haven't been able to find anything about it.

You agree that they can serve them to you. Blocking them kind of stops that, yeah?

8 Rights you grant us

In consideration for the rights granted to you under the Agreements, you grant us the right (1) to allow the Spotify Service to use the processor, bandwidth, and storage hardware on your Device in order to facilitate the operation of the Service, (2) to provide advertising and other information to you, and (3) to allow our business partners to do the same. In any part of the Spotify Service, the Content you access, including its selection and placement, may be influenced by commercial considerations, including Spotify’s agreements with third parties. Some Content licensed by, provided to, created by or otherwise made available by Spotify (e.g. podcasts) may contain advertising as part of the Content. The Spotify Service makes such Content available to you unmodified.

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