Can Adware Go Legit?
from the about-as-likely-as-the-mob... dept
Over the last year or so we've seen plenty of stories about the various mainstream adware companies trying to "go legit" and get beyond their early ways that made them so incredibly hated. There's no doubt that some have changed some of their methods, but can they ever really go completely legit? First of all, they have a pretty major legacy issue. Just saying they're going legit and changing a user agreement or certain practices is not nearly enough. These companies have years long histories of sneaky, underhanded, annoying and downright dirty practices -- and even their "new" business models are often built on the basis of the data and users they received through those means. On top of that, people are beginning to notice that once you take away those sneaky, underhanded practices, the business model falls apart. That's why we've questioned why anyone would invest in the space (which upset one of these companies in particular). It's great that these companies now want to become more legit -- but making a few changes and hoping that everyone will come running (and that others won't be suspicious of them) isn't enough.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
Can adware become legit
A longer answer, how can there be any legitimate installation of software which spies on the user, whether for advertising, or for malicious intent? The user paid for his computing resources and should control any and all information in the machine, and any flow out of it, period. If the software wants to do otherwise, it should be something the user can (and will) reject on its face.
As to advertising blocking, that is something that will probably be the next thing to be blocked and sellers of products to filter out such will be hounded into submission, as the advertising industry revenue actually dwarfs in size the amounts being made by the current bankrupt business models, by the recording and media companies. If one could buy a product to block all advertising, in an ideal world from television as well as computers, and everywhere else, do you think there would be long before the powers that be ban it and throw sellers of such in prison?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Can adware become legit
Honestly, I think my question makes more sense than yours. Let's suppose something entirely physically impossible and then conclude that if that were to happen, something equally ridiculous would also happen. It's even more of a useless excerice than the "would you drink a bucket of bleach for a million dollars" game.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]