May 06, 2004
Pop-up Blocking = MP3 Sharing?
So here's a topic I don't think we've discussed before.
Chris Vanderhook, COO of SpecificMedia, an online advertising firm that operates two networks of pop-under ads, says in a recent PC World the following about software that blocks pop-up ads:
"Blocking pop-ups is almost like ripping off music online," he says. "When you go to ESPN.com every day, you enjoy its content for free. But it's not free; it's paid for by advertising."While under the law the two are clearly not equivalent at this time... should they be? Morally are they? What about skipping ads with your DVR or VCR? And if you disagree with Vanderhook.... why is he wrong?
Posted by David Gaw in Sci-Tech at May 6, 2004 10:16 AM
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Comments
I rationalize it -- I mean think about it -- this way:
There's no contractual obligation to endure advertising. If I get on a bus, I'm not required to read the ads. Maybe I do, maybe I don't. That's the risk the advertiser takes.
If I watch TV live, I can run to the bathroom during a commercial. Again, assumed risk.
Now we've got technology to make avoiding advertising easier: pop-up blockers, auto-advance DVRs, etc. If the advertisers find it too difficult to get their message out with these methods, they'll have to find others. The onus isn't on us to listen to whatever they have to give. The onus is on them to make the advertising so engaging that, not only do we want to look at it, but we want to buy what they're selling.
If the pop-ups on ESPN.com aren't selling anything, the advertisers will pull them. If EPSN.com can't find other advertisers, they'll have to start charging, or scale back their operation. Remember, they aren't out there just for the ad revenue. They're a living breathing advertisement for their own cable networks.
Take it too the extreme: what if I could eliminate all advertising from impinging on my senses? So what? There's a constitutional right to speak. There isn't a constitutional right that anyone has to listen to you.
Posted by: Russell Lutz at May 6, 2004 11:10 AM