As the value of online digital ads races to the bottom, we're left wondering if it's become just another form of spam, something that software should filter out. Indeed, some say adblocking is the biggest boycott ever known with 200 million people blocking the ads and growing. What caused this backlash against the business model that was supposed to fund free content on the Web? How has data been misused to trigger an abusive relationship between businesses and consumers? What's the prognosis for a marketplace that industry insiders are increasingly admitting might be "subprime?" What if it's about to be substantially reshaped by market forces, shifting social attitudes about personal data collection, and looming regulatory changes on privacy and data protection? David Carroll will tackle these topics and more at the next UX + Data Meetup. David is the associate professor of media design at Parsons School of Design where he teaches in the MFA Design and Technology program. He is also a recovering entrepreneur whose failed startup was an AI brain learning pop culture through digital magazine archives. He's on Twitter and Medium as @profcarroll

1. adblock IS A boycOTT
David Carroll MFA
@profcarroll
Associate Professor of Media Design
An epic failure of Big Data and UX
and other perils of Surveillance Capitalism
April 7, 2016
version 2.0
Fair use rights reserved.
Big Data + UX Meetup at Pivotal Labs

2. 200,000,000 people
block the ads.

3. THE Biggest boycott
in human history.
— Doc searls
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

4. if marketers had
been measuring
the market,
they would have
seen this coming.
— Doc searls
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

5. » What is it?
» How did it happen?
» Why did it happen?
» What is happening now?
» What happens next?
» What can we do about it?
TALK Agenda
Is the adtech industrial complex a subprime market on the verge of collapse?
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
📈💸📉
Big Data + UX Meetup at Pivotal Labs

6. 6
Idiocracy (2006) Directed by Mike Judge

7. 7
Minority Report (2002) Directed by Steven Spielberg

8. Mad Men, Season 7 (2014) Created by Matthew Weiner

9. David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

10. David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

11. David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
creepy
ads
👣

12. David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
lost
trust
💔

13. 13
https://theconversation.com/think-youre-reading-the-news-for-free-new-research-shows-youre-likely-paying-with-your-privacy-49694

14. https://theconversation.com/think-youre-reading-the-news-for-free-new-research-shows-youre-likely-paying-with-your-privacy-49694
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
wild
west
🐂

15. © LUMA Partners LLC 2015
Performance
Video / Rich Media
Targeted Networks / AMPs
Horizontal
Vertical / Custom
Mobile
ExchangesDSPs
Publisher
Tools
Data Suppliers
Ad Servers
DMPs and Data
Aggregators
Measurement
and Analytics
Creative
Optimization
Agency
Trading Desks
Ad Networks
Media Planning
and Attribution
Verification /
Privacy
Ad Servers
Retargeting
Media Mgmt Systems and Operations
Sharing Data /
Social Tools
SSPs
DISPLAY LUMAscape
M
A
R
K
E
T
E
R
P
U
B
L
I
S
H
E
R
C
O
N
S
U
M
E
R
i
Tag Mgmt
Agencies
Denotes acquired company Denotes shuttered company
Source: Lunascape by LUMA Partners

16. 16
Performance
Video / Rich Media
Targeted Networks / AMPs
Vertical / Custom
Mobile
Publisher
Tools
Data Suppliers
Ad Servers
DMPs and Data
Aggregators
Measurement
and Analytics
Creative
Optimization
Media Planning
and Attribution
Verification /
Privacy
Ad Servers
Retargeting
SSPs
Tag Mgmt
Source: Lunascape by LUMA Partners

17. David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

18. 18
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

19. WTF?
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

20. David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

21. David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

22. MY CREDIT SCORE?
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
dirty
little
secrets
🔎

23. “it’s one of the dodgiest companies around
they have the biggest data of all, and make it available in anyway you like
as long as you pay” — anonymous adtech insider
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
dirty
little
secrets
🔎

24. The Online Advertising Ecosystem
12 34
Anonymizing
network or proxy
Service-oriented
media companies that
do campaign management
and audience extension
Both premium and long-
tail sites and networks
Measured impressions
Network and Exchanges
Buyer of Media
Placements
ADVERTISER
OR AGENCY
SOURCES
OF BOTS
Bot Script
PHANTOM LAYER
Phantom Websites
Sold as clicks,
views, video plays,
or social media likes
Botnet
Large PPC
Network
Impression
Handlers
(platforms
and exchanges)
Anonymizing
Search Engine
Traffic
Audience
Extension or
Other Supplier
Network
Secondary
Phantom Site
Ad
Ad
Ad
Ad
Broker of Traffic
BROKER
Buyer and Reseller of
Traffic and Clicks
PUBLISHER
Seller of Traffic
Provides what
the broker requests,
often clicks
SUPPLIER
Phantom Layer
Traffic Mixes with
Legitimate Traffic
Publisher
Publisher
Networks
Exchanges
Verification Service Work to Keep Fraud Out of the System5
https://digitalcontentnext.org/blog/2015/09/28/2015-dcn-bot-benchmark-report-what-makes-a-publisher-premium/David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
fraud
BOTS
🤖

25. Source: comScore and Sourcepoint
) * + , - . /
⛔ Ad Blocking ADOPTION RATES BY COUNTRY
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
30%
28%
16%16%16%
13%
12%
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

26. 20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Age 18-24 Age 25-34 Age 35-44 Age 45-54 Age 55-64 Age 65+
8%9%9%9%
13%
20%
7%8%8%8%11%16%
US UK
) *
⛔ Ad Blocking ADOPTION RATES BY AGE
👨👩 👴👱 👩 👵
Source: comScore and Sourcepoint
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

27. Source: comScore and Sourcepoint
1.5%
3%
4.5%
6%
7.5%
9%
US UK NL ES CA DE FR CN IN
+ , - . /) * 6 7
⛔📲 Mobile Ad Blocking ADOPTION RATES BY Country
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

28. Popovers
Non-skippable mid roll
Display ads with audio
Non-skippable pre-roll
Interstitials
Animated display ads
Skippable mid roll
Skippable pre roll
Test display ads
Still image ads
22.5% 45% 67.5% 90%
33%
33%
39%
55%
61%
71%
73%
78%
81%
83%
Source: PageFair
% of Respondents who are “completely Unwilling”
to view various types of ads
⛔🚫
👍
👎
🖕
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

29. Not annoying
Respects my privacy
Loads faster
Relevant ad content
Nothing, I will always block ads
20% 40% 60% 80%
21%
42%
53%
57%
71%
Source: AdBlock Plus
Which requirements would be sufficient to allow ads?⛔⚙
🚫
🎯
⚡
👁
🕶
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

30. Source: Pew Research Center
20%
40%
60%
80%
Cleared cookies Deleted/edit post Disable browser cookies
32%
17%
42%
37%
24%
56%
41%
39%
70%
49%
71%
74%
18-29 30-49 50-64 65+
% of adult internet users who have done the
following as a result of privacy concerns
🚫❌📛 🍪 📝
⛔👁
🍪
👦👧 👨👩 👴👵👱 👩👵👦 👨👱
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

31. Zang J, Dummit K, Graves J, Lisker P, Sweeney L. Who Knows What About Me? A Survey of Behind the Scenes Personal Data Sharing to Third
Parties by Mobile Apps. Technology Science. 2015103001. October 30, 2015. http://techscience.org/a/2015103001
Who Knows What About Me? A Survey of
Behind the Scenes Personal Data Sharing
to Third Parties by Mobile Apps
Jinyan Zang, Krysta Dummit, James Graves, Paul Lisker, and Latanya Sweeney
Highlights
• We tested 110 popular, free Android and iOS apps to look for apps that shared
personal, behavioral, and location data with third parties
• 73% of Android apps shared personal information such as email address with third
parties, and 47% of iOS apps shared geo-coordinates and other location data with
third parties
• 93% of Android apps tested connected to a mysterious domain, safemovedm.com,
likely due to a background process of the Android phone
• We show that a significant proportion of apps share data from user inputs such as
personal information or search terms with third parties without Android or iOS
requiring a notification to the user
Zang J, Dummit K, Graves J, Lisker P, Sweeney L. Who Knows What About Me? A Survey of Behind the Scenes Personal Data Sharing to Third
Parties by Mobile Apps. Technology Science. 2015103001. October 30, 2015. http://techscience.org/a/2015103001
Sharing of sensitive data by Android apps (left) to domains (right)
http://techscience.org/a/2015103001/David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
leaky
apps
💧

32. http://recode.net/2015/10/07/mossberg-the-real-trouble-with-web-ads/ http://adage.com/article/datadriven-marketing/behavioral-advertising-crucial/291858/

33. http://digiday.com/publishers/publishers-data-trackers/
https://twitter.com/jason_kint/status/571399641469730817

34. http://www.theawl.com/2015/09/welcome-to-the-block-party
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/10/01/business/cost-of-mobile-ads.html http://www.theawl.com/2015/09/welcome-to-the-block-party

35. 35
http://recode.net/2015/09/24/advertising-2-0-a-call-to-think/
http://www.bloomberg.com/features/2015-click-fraud/

36. doc searls
on
SHOSHANA
ZUBOFF
👁
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.

37. David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
Randall
rothenBerg's
lame
mea-culpa
😒

38. David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
Industry’s
broken
opt-out
🕳

39. http://idlewords.com/talks/what_happens_next_will_amaze_you.htm
- Maciej Ceglowski

40. http://www.courthousenews.com/2016/03/16/facebook-mines-data-off-cancer-sites-users-say.htm?linkId=22651719
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
cancer.
🚬

41. David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
the people
vs.
facebook
👥

42. http://fortune.com/2015/11/12/media-platforms/
https://ar.al/notes/the-nature-of-the-self-in-the-digital-age/
the people
vs.
facebook

43. http://www.technologyreview.com/featuredstory/543311/the-ad-blocking-kingpin-reshaping-the-web-as-he-prefers-it/
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
choose An
adblocker
wisely.
🚫

44. ● ●
●
●
●
●
●
0
2000
4000
6000 2012−01
2012−07
2013−01
2013−07
2014−01
2014−07
2015−01
NumberofFilters
Filter
Category
Restricted Blocking Unrestricted Sitekey
Added Sedo
Sitekey
Whitelist Released
in ABP 2.0
Added
Reddit
Added Conversion
Tracking for
DoubleClick
Added Google
Search ads
Added
About.com
Added Unrestricted
AdSense for Search
Figure 3: The growth of the Acceptable Ads whitelist. The whitelist has grown steadily since its introduction in 2011. On average, this filter list is updated
every 1.5 days, adding or modifying 11.4 exception filters. The most recent version (Rev. 988 on April 28, 2015) includes 5,936 filters. Among these are exceptions
for domain parking services, conversions tracking, and third-party ad networks.
3. ACCEPTABLE ADS
In May 2011, Adblock Plus’s creator, Wladimir Palant, outlined
Eyeo’s practices have incensed some publishers to such a degree
that they have accused the company of “extortion” and “shaking

45. http://thankyouforadblocking.com
safe ads?
💣

46. http://thankyouforadblocking.com
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
safe ads?
💣

47. https://theintercept.com/2015/11/12/edward-snowden-explains-how-to-reclaim-your-privacy/

48. http://www.wired.com/2015/11/court-says-tracking-web-histories-can-violate-wiretap-act/ http://www.cnbc.com/2015/11/09/privacy-will-hit-tipping-point-in-2016.html http://www.mondaynote.com/2015/11/09/ad-blockers-will-change

49. https://twitter.com/ashk4n/status/714889287133691905David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
gaping
security
flaws
😱

50. The Matrix (1999) Directed by The Wachowski Brothers

51. Where is this headed?
what now?
» Will big platforms swallow up
publishing, advertising, and
audiences in one gulp?
» Will adtech and media buying
show any restraint?
» Will publishers sell direct?
» Will people recapture their
privacy?
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
🔮
Big Data + UX Meetup at Pivotal Labs

52. privacy is not
only the right
to keep a secret.
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott. Big Data + UX Meetup at Pivotal Labs

53. privacy is not
only the right
OF SECLUSION…
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott. Big Data + UX Meetup at Pivotal Labs

54. privacy is the right
to construct your
own identity.
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott. Big Data + UX Meetup at Pivotal Labs

55. privacy is the right
to own to your own
identity.
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott. Big Data + UX Meetup at Pivotal Labs

56. privacy by design.
big data rights.
David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott. Big Data + UX Meetup at Pivotal Labs

57. David Carroll (@profcarroll) Adblock is a boycott.
Latest stakeholder plan:
how to solve it?
» Let people complain
about advertising.
» More brand ads, less
ad spam.
» Target by placement,
not eyeballs, solving
privacy/security issues.
» Measure satisfaction,
not eyeballs and clicks.
http://on.recode.net/1RYZjl6