Facebook makes the bulk of its revenues by serving advertisements to its billion-plus users. A significant chunk of those ads are served on mobile but the company has been feeling the pinch from desktop users who ad blockers enabled to have an ad-free Facebook experience. Facebook has announced that it has made changes to the way ads are served on the desktop version of the site and they will now be able to bypass ad blockers. Makers of the popular ad blocking software Adblock Plus say that this decision by Facebook is “anti-user.”
Facebook openly announced that it has found a way to push ads to users who have ad blockers enabled to keep them at bay. It also said that it will provide users with ad preference tools which enable them to tailor the ad experience.
In a post on its official blog, AdBlock Plus writes that this decision by Facebook “takes a dark path against user choice.” The post was penned by Ben Williams, the communications and operations manager at Eyeo, the company that owns AdBlock Plus.
Williams adds that it’s hard to imagine that this will prove to be productive for Facebook or the brands that advertise through it. “Publishers (like Facebook) alienate their audience and advertisers (the brands) allow their cherished brand name to be shoved down people’s throats,” he writes.
What side of the argument are you on? Do you think that Facebook is right in forcing ads on users that don’t want to see them or do you think that it’s a small price to pay to use Facebook for free?