3 ms·

Chrome on Android is a different story though. Firefox on Android allows you to use add-ons for the web version of Firefox with no fuss. Why can't Chrome do the

Chrome on Android is a different story though. Firefox on Android allows you to use add-ons for the web version of Firefox with no fuss. Why can't Chrome do the same?

mschuster91 10y ago
Because the very first thing many people would install is Adblock Plus. Google, however, desperately needs mobile advertising, because people are using desktop/laptop PCs less and less (and more and more people use adblockers on these), and mobile advertising is the only space not yet "disrupted" by ad blockers.
- leadingthenet 10y ago
  I'm not sure how valid that claim is, since Content Blockers are a thing on iOS and I'm sure there are similar solutions on Android.
  - marak830 10y ago
    I think it's more towards the school of thought of 'if it isn't easy, most people won't. Installing an ad blocker isn't as easy as installing an add on someone links, you have to actively search for it (and require root on Android? Not 100% sure about that. For chrome this is, I have ff on my Android).
    - NoGravitas 10y ago
      If you want to block ads in apps as well as the browser, you have two options. One is an adblocker that's implemented using the VPN API. This doesn't require root, but it does mean that all of your data usage will appear to come from the adblocker app, rather than your specific apps. The other is to use an app that adds blocklists to /etc/hosts. This does require root.
  - iofj 10y ago
    That only works because of another bit of anticompetitive behavior, on the side of Apple. There is in fact only a single browser available on ios (without hacking/sideloading) : Apple Safari. The Chrome and Firefox browsers are skins over embedded Safari [1] + utilities (such as bookmark/password sync) (technically it uses UIWebView, which is Safari). So, it is despite Google's sincerest efforts that Chrome has adblocking on ios. [1] https://developer.chrome.com/multidevice/ios/overview https://developer.chrome.com/multidevice/ios/overview
- vetinari 10y ago
  > Because the very first thing many people would install is Adblock Plus. Because I can't install Adblock in Android Chrome, I won't use Chrome at all. And because I like my bookmarks/history synced between phone and desktop, that means that I won't use Chrome on desktop either.
  - Xiol 10y ago
    I ended up using a hosts-file based solution on my home server to block ads in my household at the network level. Then I connect to my VPN and push all traffic from my mobile through it so ads get blocked when I'm out and about. On the upside, this works in Chrome and in apps, so my mobile experience is ad-free without having to root my device. Bit extreme, I'll admit...

Chrome on Android is a different story though. Firefox on Android allows you to use add-ons for the web version of Firefox with no fuss. Why can't Chrome do the same?

mschuster91 10y ago

Because the very first thing many people would install is Adblock Plus. Google, however, desperately needs mobile advertising, because people are using desktop/laptop PCs less and less (and more and more people use adblockers on these), and mobile advertising is the only space not yet "disrupted" by ad blockers.

leadingthenet 10y ago
I'm not sure how valid that claim is, since Content Blockers are a thing on iOS and I'm sure there are similar solutions on Android.
- marak830 10y ago
  I think it's more towards the school of thought of 'if it isn't easy, most people won't. Installing an ad blocker isn't as easy as installing an add on someone links, you have to actively search for it (and require root on Android? Not 100% sure about that. For chrome this is, I have ff on my Android).
  - NoGravitas 10y ago
    If you want to block ads in apps as well as the browser, you have two options. One is an adblocker that's implemented using the VPN API. This doesn't require root, but it does mean that all of your data usage will appear to come from the adblocker app, rather than your specific apps. The other is to use an app that adds blocklists to /etc/hosts. This does require root.
- iofj 10y ago
  That only works because of another bit of anticompetitive behavior, on the side of Apple. There is in fact only a single browser available on ios (without hacking/sideloading) : Apple Safari. The Chrome and Firefox browsers are skins over embedded Safari [1] + utilities (such as bookmark/password sync) (technically it uses UIWebView, which is Safari). So, it is despite Google's sincerest efforts that Chrome has adblocking on ios. [1] https://developer.chrome.com/multidevice/ios/overview https://developer.chrome.com/multidevice/ios/overview
vetinari 10y ago
> Because the very first thing many people would install is Adblock Plus. Because I can't install Adblock in Android Chrome, I won't use Chrome at all. And because I like my bookmarks/history synced between phone and desktop, that means that I won't use Chrome on desktop either.
- Xiol 10y ago
  I ended up using a hosts-file based solution on my home server to block ads in my household at the network level. Then I connect to my VPN and push all traffic from my mobile through it so ads get blocked when I'm out and about. On the upside, this works in Chrome and in apps, so my mobile experience is ad-free without having to root my device. Bit extreme, I'll admit...