4 ms·
Don't promote non-Mozilla products via your web browser. It's a conduit for content, not a content showcase. Come up with an idea of "browser neutrality".
by sho_hn 9y ago
Don't promote non-Mozilla products via your web browser. It's a conduit for content, not a content showcase.
Come up with an idea of "browser neutrality".
- Vinnl 9y agoWhile I understand the sentiment, does that mean they should also remove the search box/ability to use a search engine from the address bar? And what if the search engine they promote is e.g. DuckDuckGo? And what should be their source of funding?
- sho_hn 9y agoA search engine frontend produces content in response to a user query, not proactively. Even before the first query I get an option to choose. It's not the same thing. It's more on the content conduit side than operator-run showcase. Has the idea that Mozilla won't survive without advertising income been substantiated somewhere? (This ad was unpaid, though.)
- Vinnl 9y agoBut by those lines, wouldn't it be fine to show some Mr. Robot-related content if the user has to proactively flip a switch in about:config?
- sho_hn 9y agoAs long as there's a reasonable way for others to provide opt-in TV show extensions as well (otherwise it's not a neutral conduit again), sure.
- Vinnl 9y agoAlright, but then isn't that exactly what happened here?
- andrewjw 9y agoNo, because it was emphatically not opt-in, nor was there an open conduit for others to provide alternatives.
- sfink 9y agoInstallation of the addon was not opt-in. Receiving any form of promotional content was opt-in via about:config. There is an open conduit; anybody else could offer an addon. So I agree that it was not neutral, because there was more of a barrier to other advertisers than to Mr. Roboto. The right thing would be to have hosted the addon on addons.mozilla.org, same as for anyone else. But it's not a dramatically uneven playing field, given that an open conduit does exist and the reception of any actual advertising was opt-in. (I'm not saying it was ok; it wasn't. But it's not as black and white as you are saying.)
- hawski 9y agoWith Mozilla's current financing model Firefox can't be a "neutral browser", can it?
- mcny 9y agoAll the more reason to shut down all non essential operations, focus on the core, and radically reduce expenses.
- Fnoord 9y agoOr all the more reason to try to gain more users via a promotional ad like this one in order to stay relevant and not go the Opera route. In hindsight it backfired, but hindsight 20/20 is easy. Thing is, why assume malice?