iAds to flood UK iPhones, iPads Apple's iOS-based iAd service will jump the pond next month and land in the UK and France, debuting with ads for L'Oréal, Renault, Louis Vuitton, Absolute Radio, and eight other deep-pocket brands. These brands will join what Cupertino's announcement claims are "over half of the top 25 leading US national advertisers" in the …
...I find myself going "meh" at the plans to run their own advertising through the phone. It's not like everyone else doesn't do it, and free apps are pretty much expected to throw up banners here and there. So they probably won't let Random Advertising Network Ltd into their walled garden? BFD. At least this way the customers' personal data and history is only being mined by one company that is too big to fold up and disappear to evade the law if data protection violations rear their head.
I'm just slightly boggled that they are sticking with that name. Congratulations, your iPhone now has iAds? That's a screw-up of Microsoftian "If you have a life without walls, why do you need Windows" comedy potential.
so now they have their captive adience locked in, they will be spamming them with adverts they don't want
just in time for xmas
one more reason not to let an apple product through my front door
mines the coat without anything apple in it
My view of Apple's design for the iPad/iPhone has always been as their 'personal media delivery platform' to your pocket (or onto your lap) ... and Googles foray into Android as a platform for delivering their ads into your pocket (and now also lap).
Of the 2 evils, Ads has been the greatest for me as media at least has its benefits (even if constrained by a walled garden).
However, Apple now clearly leaps to the top of the evil pile with media AND ads. At least Android has still not erected a wall. (e.g. Bing being used as the deault search engine on some devices)
Would be nice if the communication device market was not dominated by companies building devices tailored to bringing them continuous revenue streams and focussed on devices for communication and not media/add consumption :-( (Unfortunately increasingly rare with symbian in retreat, Meego still only 'press-release-ware' and Bada ... well ...)
It's to allow developers to earn money for coding applications then giving them away for FREE.
"one more reason not to let an apple product through my front door"
You don't want ads, don't use free apps - buy them instead. I've moved to an iPhone from my previous Android handset because the iPhone is much superior, and let me tell you - there are PLENTY more free apps with ads on the Android Marketplace than there are in the App Store.
And you get the added bonus that Apple apps are better quality anyway because they've been reviewed before being published to the App Store.
It's no different whatsoever to TV broadcasting (at least in the UK.) You pay an annual licence fee which goes to the BBC, so there are no ads (at least only ads for BBC programs) but you get ads on ITV, C4 and five because they don't get any contribution from the BBC's licence fee.
"so now they have their captive adience locked in, they will be spamming them with adverts they don't want"
So I take it you'll be going nowhere near an Android phone then.
For example:
Angry Birds on iPhone - paid for ad free app.
Angry Birds on Android - free annoyingly distracting advert supported app.
Adverts on a music playing device? I'm sure someone did that before... Oh yes! Sigue Sigue Sputnik. They also had Studio Line from L'Oreal although in this case, I can see how it might make a change from Job's constant whining.
For the younger members: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigue_Sigue_Sputnik
Granted this is for apps, but still along the same lines. Then of course, you may end up paying more for those adverts because the are iAdverts.
Flames as I'm betting the Apple fanbois won't appreciate the sarcasm!
On the down side: ugh! Ads when I don't want them. Can I turn them off?
In the middle: well, if it makes for a better user experience or contributes to lower costs it may be worthwhile enduring the ads (but can I turn them off?)
In the longterm:
if ad revenues return wholesomely to those with iAds credentials look for a big bump in Year 2 to ad costs.
If iAds flop will it mean open access to any and all with a compromised Apple experience?
If it sort of just chugs along: mediocrity maintained?
Since the vast majority of Google's revenues come from adverting and the bought AdMob specifically for advertising targeted at mobile platforms that have already been available for a couple of years, does it not follow that Google are more likely to do this, especially given the total disregard Herr Schmidt has for privacy and taking into account that, as such, Google do not make a dime from Android?
I just hope iAds is sensible enough to turn off (or let you turn off) its demands for a data connection (to collect new adverts) when you're abroad on holiday, or the phone bill when you return is going to contain a world of pain...
Oh hang on, this is designed in the USA... What percentage of them was it that have passports again?
Oh gawd, you're screwed!
Anyone wanting to enter/re-enter the States needs a passport. Members of First Nations (aka 'Indians') have border crossing rights as per their treaties such as the Kanawaga and frequently suggest to US border guards alternate uses for body orifices. Their tribal lands straddle the Canadian/USA border.
Driving licences, birth certificates are no longer acceptable.
Considering that if you have a data connection anywhere with Android it will download ads then I expect the iAds will do the same.
If the ad supported games and apps don't need a data connection, turning it off when using them prevents the ads downloading on Android, I expect the same will work on the iPhone.
Let's UK privacy legislation catches up with smartphones prohibiting the collection and re-transmission of any location data - unless specifically permitted on a line by line basis.
This privacy should also include info about WiFi's in the area (Google was hit with complaints so why should iAds be able to) or details about the handset other than the telephone number.
An option should be available whereby purchasing an App entitles you to use free of adverts or the collection of data unrelated to the App operation. 'Free' Apps should be allowed to display adverts.
I feel the RIM exec who suggested that apps shouldn't be needed hit a point - smartphones are largely mobile InterNet terminals and many Apps are superfluous.
"I feel the RIM exec who suggested that apps shouldn't be needed hit a point - smartphones are largely mobile InterNet terminals and many Apps are superfluous."
I just know that you would have been one of the many goons dribbling about how the original iPhone didn't have a native SDK and that nobody wanted or needed web apps! Be quiet.
"An option should be available whereby purchasing an App entitles you to use free of adverts or the collection of data unrelated to the App operation. 'Free' Apps should be allowed to display adverts."
Yes, that's usually how the system works and is the whole point of it. Want the app for free, then put up with ads to fund the developer. Pay for the app and they remove the ads.
As one of the early adopters is Louis Vuitton*, I don't think you are the first to spot that one....
*One of those 50 quid bags with a 500 quid logo on it should go nicely with that 200 quid smartphone with a 700 quid logo on it. Not for nothing are both LVMH and Apple famously litiginous when it comes to their branding.....
Although it is feasible that paid for apps could also have adverts it would be blatantly stupid to do so as (1) you would make your money from the app rather than add-pushing and (2) no one would buy an app that also punted ads.
Free apps punt ads because they are free in the same way that your lunch is free - one way or another the developer needs a revenue stream so either you pay for it up front or you suck up the adds. You don't have to launch them.
iAds is a much better option than embedding ads in apps in the way they are/were done previously - as has been discussed here at length.
And as for permission to collect data, one of two things would happen, either you would sign away your rights when you originally buy iPhone/iPad or you would sign away your rights when you buy the application.
Opera on the PC back in the day had an ad bar at the top. No biggie.
Some android apps on my phone are add supported. No biggie again, if I don't want to see the ads, I buy the adfree version. Sometimes the coders let the app run when data connection is off. No connection, no ads.
I really can't see the issue here. I dislike apple for a lot of reasons, but I can't see how this is any worse than, say, the ads in the free version of Spotify?
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