Isn't this kind of proving the point though? People go to Amazon for online shopping because Amazon pays to have a bigger web presence through advertising than

Isn't this kind of proving the point though? People go to Amazon for online shopping because Amazon pays to have a bigger web presence through advertising than WalMart does. Had there been no advertising on either end, you'd have a level playing field where people would have to discover the best / cheapest / most efficient online shopping on their own. Seems strange that you think advertising helps here when you also claim that people are responding to advertising with negative outcomes.