2. Ad blocking software identifies and prevents annoying
advertisements, popups and spam from displaying on
your browser when you visit websites. Because the
removal is seamless, you see a coherent web page with
no indication that ads have been removed.
3. At first glance, ad blocking programs seem like the
perfect solution for intrusive ads that muck up your
browsing experience. Internet advertising gets more
intense by the day, and ad blocking programs are
becoming increasingly common. The downside is that
webmasters and companies that have relied on these ads
to generate revenue are losing a substantial market
share.
4. By some estimates, up to 25 percent of web surfers are
now equipped with ad blocking software. That means up
to 25 percent of website visitors no longer see the ads
displayed there. Meanwhile, Google searches about ad
blocking have doubled, suggesting that the use of ad
blocking software is on the rise.
5. Because ad blocking programs are a breeze to install
and free for the taking, analysts predict that by 2018
they will be the rule rather than the exception.
According to data from BI Intelligence, at least five
percent of Internet users worldwide were using ad
blocking programs in the second quarter of 2014, and
two-thirds of them used Chrome or Firefox browsers.
6. The most popular version of ad blocking software is
Adblock Plus. It debuted in 2002 and is now the most
downloaded Internet browser extension in history.
Adblock Plus is available for all major browsers from
Safari to Opera. Firefox and Chrome users are most
likely to block ads, whereas Internet Explorer users are
the least likely. Ad blocking is also catching on in
mobile browsers, and this trend is expected to
continue.
7. Although users believe ad blocking improves their
browsing experience, most do not realize that the
income generated by the blocked ads is what allows
publishers to provide free content for visitors. Blocking
ads can mean a substantial loss of valuable content.
8. Content providers fund themselves primarily with
revenue obtained from online advertising. If that
advertising revenue is removed, content producers
might stop providing free content altogether.
Meanwhile, Internet users are so accustomed to free
content like articles, news and music that if they're
suddenly asked to pay for it, they probably won't want
to. This, in turn, further decreases the amount of content
that companies can afford to provide.
9. Ad blocking also forces advertisers to create more
intrusive ads. Although this has no effect on anyone
using ad blocking technology, the more aggressive ads
are annoying those without ad blocking to the point
where they, too, are signing on for the software.
10. Online businesses rely on Internet advertising to
generate a significant share their income. As ad
blocking becomes more common, these revenues are
expected to drop. According to a recent news report in
the Financial Times, tech companies like Microsoft and
Google are now paying Adblock Plus 30 percent of the
income they could earn if their ads were unblocked. In
return for payment, Adblock Plus agrees to not block
ads that meet certain criteria.
11. Although mega-companies like Microsoft and Google
can afford to pay off Adblock Plus to get their ads back
online, smaller companies cannot afford to do this.
Regardless of what transpires, webmasters will be
forced to generate new marketing strategies and to
implement innovative procedures that make up for what
they're losing due to ad blocking software. Meanwhile,
government regulators will be left to puzzle over how
all of it is going to play out.
12. Search Optics Inc is a leader in digital marketing
solutions for the automotive industry. Search Optics’ car
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opportunities. Search Optics specializes in car dealer
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details, please visit Searchoptics.com.
