Why I Currently Don't Block Ads (And Why I'm Now Considering It)
For the longest time, I have held the belief that if I get content for free, I shouldn't block ads. Content providers give me their content with the understanding that they will make their money for producing that content from the advertisements on their page. I am quite comfortable with that arrangement. In fact, I often find myself clicking on ads if I find them relevant. I'm sure plenty of other people do to. Because of that, I have been hesitant to install Ad-blocking software in my browser. Sure, ads flashing at me are annoying, but I can live with it. And advertisements that are contextually aware and relevant are likely to be useful to me.
So what's changed: The ads have. Over time, they are becoming more and more intrusive. I started to get annoyed when you made me view an ad before I could see your site (and even giving me a way to close the ad and click through to the content doesn't help, because it makes an extra step. Annoying.) I really started to get angry when flash ads would start speaking as soon as I landed on your page (and in fact, anyone who uses that advertising model doesn't get my page views. I just don't visit your site anymore, no matter how useful it is.) I was more than a tad bit irked when you decided to have those horrible pop-ups that appear whenever I accidentally hover over a word for too long on your page.
But the straw that broke the camel's back: Ads that expand in size and cover up part of the page just because I accidentally moused over that ad. (You don't even have to hover anymore. If the mouse pointer crosses the ad space, the ad expands.) To make it worse, many of these ads contain video. Oh, and hiding the close button just annoyed me even further. I also place ads that scroll in from the top or side of the page in this category. They are annoying, but more importantly, they are intrusive and they are blocking my attempt to access the content, even if only for a short time.
I can't take it anymore. Content providers: I don't mind ads. Really, I even sometimes find them useful. But don't cause scripts to execute on my machine unless I click. If I press that mouse button, it's all fair. But automatic scripts are seriously making me angry. I have never considered using ad-blocking software for more than a few seconds. Today, I've actually started investigating my options. I am seeking an ad-blocker that will allow me to pick which sites can show me ads and which sites can't. If your site uses obtrusive ads, I will shut them off, no matter how I ethically feel about using your content without viewing your ads, because as far I am concerned, you have crossed an ethical boundary yourself: Never piss off your readers.
So if anyone knows of ad-blocking software that works this way, let me know please. I have definitely become one of those people who needs ad-blocking software, in order to maintain my own sanity.
