5 ms·

> They also show ads even if you have a subscription, which sounds very backward to me. So are you also cancelling your cable subscription, any magazine subscr

> They also show ads even if you have a subscription, which sounds very backward to me. So are you also cancelling your cable subscription, any magazine subscriptions, physical newspaper subscriptions, no longer driving on toll roads with billboard...? I'm not saying it's right, or good, or valid--but the standard practice, for as long as I can remember, for most mediums, is to still show ads for things you pay for. So I'm not sure how that makes it "backwards".

swebs 8y ago
>So are you also cancelling your cable subscription Yep >any magazine subscriptions Yep >physical newspaper subscriptions, Yep Don't forget about Hulu. Ads are my #1 reason for canceling most paid services.
- spookthesunset 8y ago
  You are an outlier though.... (but I must admit, if I did pull the plug on cable the primary reason (besides we really don't use it much) would be the fact I pay big bucks to watch a fuckton of advertising)
  - ectospheno 8y ago
    You have a different definition of outlier than is used in statistics. He hasn't been an outlier for years now regardless of how many advertising executives still want to think that he is.
- bytematic 8y ago
  What is so bad about advertising?
r3bl 8y ago
Because you can open a private/incognito/porn tab and view the same article without actually paying for it, and a premium should offer you something worth a constant amount of money draining from your account. Paying 15 euros per month to get a daily crossword + cooking section (or 9 euros per month to not get them) is something not a lot of people are interested in.
- paulcole 8y ago
  The crossword is $40/year on its own. A great value.
criddell 8y ago
A lot of people have cancelled their cable subscription and get by with ad-free services like Netflix and Hulu, MLB.tv, etc... The other things you mention - magazines, newspapers, and billboards - usually don't track you and build a profile on you so they are less objectionable.
- joekrill 8y ago
  I believe Hulu actually has 2 tiers: one with ads, and higher paid tier that is ad-free. So they still use a pay model that includes showing ads. From what I have read, Netflix has at least tested showing trailers for their own content. That's still an ad, regardless of whether it's for their own content or not. Magazines and newspapers may not track you to the extent that websites can and do. But they certainly sell your information to third parties. And they have at least some basic profile information about you (if you're subscribing to Cat Fancier, it's a pretty good bet you love cats). Even an address or zip code provides a likely income range, political leaning, etc. Billboards.... well that depends what you consider a "billboard" and what you consider "tracking". There has certainly been stories here on HN about eyesight tracking, stores tracking you using cell-phone beacons to see where you are going. These things can and have been used in signage (i.e. "small billboards"). But that's not really the point, anyway. My original point was that it was not "backwards" to pay for a particular service and have it show you ads. It's very, very common. And in most cases it's actually the norm, in almost any type of media. So I stand by my original point: showing ads is not "backwards", it's the norm.
- brlewis 8y ago
  billboards - usually don't track you With toll roads keeping a record of who travels on them when, it's only a matter of time until this revenue source gets tapped.
  - criddell 8y ago
    There's nothing special about toll roads. A billboard company could put a camera on their bill board pointed at the nearby road and collect the same data.
LUmBULtERA 8y ago
This is a rather ironic statement, because this is just what many of us have done. I use ublock origin, read books from the library, watch Netflix without any ads (obviously), have no physical magazine or newspaper subscriptions. I (gasp) live in an area where I can walk to grocery stores and other shopping establishments. Okay, I guess I see occasional ads on the subway when I look up from my book...
- joekrill 8y ago
  I'm not sure how it's ironic in any way. Maybe in the Alanis Morissette usage of the word? Whether or not you go out of your way to avoid ads isn't really germane to my point. I'm simply suggesting that it's not at all "backwards" to show ads for subscription services. That's just a fact. Are there exceptions? Absolutely. But it's just simply not the case that the concept is unusual or backwards. Even if you think you aren't seeing ads, you're probably seeing product placements, or something similar. Anyway, I'll leave you with one of my favorite NewsRadio clips: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhrnMbhMgmw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhrnMbhMgmw
freeone3000 8y ago
Yes, yes, yes, and yes, all of those things are cancelled. And it's not a huge loss to do so.
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
rconti 8y ago
It makes their content borderline unusable. Half the time the page won't scroll at all (mouse or keyboard) and I have to reload. The ads shift around and are always covering a good chunk of real estate on my screen. When you scroll and now your mouse arrow is over an ad, scrolling stops working. There are ads horizontally and vertically. It's bloody awful.
ehsankia 8y ago
I'm not trying to be a smart-ass, but I actually don't use any of the services you listed above. I've tried cable a few times at a friends house was honestly blown away at how people could stand it.

swebs 8y ago

>So are you also cancelling your cable subscription Yep >any magazine subscriptions Yep >physical newspaper subscriptions, Yep Don't forget about Hulu. Ads are my #1 reason for canceling most paid services.

spookthesunset 8y ago
You are an outlier though.... (but I must admit, if I did pull the plug on cable the primary reason (besides we really don't use it much) would be the fact I pay big bucks to watch a fuckton of advertising)
- ectospheno 8y ago
  You have a different definition of outlier than is used in statistics. He hasn't been an outlier for years now regardless of how many advertising executives still want to think that he is.
bytematic 8y ago
What is so bad about advertising?

r3bl 8y ago

Because you can open a private/incognito/porn tab and view the same article without actually paying for it, and a premium should offer you something worth a constant amount of money draining from your account. Paying 15 euros per month to get a daily crossword + cooking section (or 9 euros per month to not get them) is something not a lot of people are interested in.

paulcole 8y ago
The crossword is $40/year on its own. A great value.

criddell 8y ago

A lot of people have cancelled their cable subscription and get by with ad-free services like Netflix and Hulu, MLB.tv, etc... The other things you mention - magazines, newspapers, and billboards - usually don't track you and build a profile on you so they are less objectionable.

joekrill 8y ago
I believe Hulu actually has 2 tiers: one with ads, and higher paid tier that is ad-free. So they still use a pay model that includes showing ads. From what I have read, Netflix has at least tested showing trailers for their own content. That's still an ad, regardless of whether it's for their own content or not. Magazines and newspapers may not track you to the extent that websites can and do. But they certainly sell your information to third parties. And they have at least some basic profile information about you (if you're subscribing to Cat Fancier, it's a pretty good bet you love cats). Even an address or zip code provides a likely income range, political leaning, etc. Billboards.... well that depends what you consider a "billboard" and what you consider "tracking". There has certainly been stories here on HN about eyesight tracking, stores tracking you using cell-phone beacons to see where you are going. These things can and have been used in signage (i.e. "small billboards"). But that's not really the point, anyway. My original point was that it was not "backwards" to pay for a particular service and have it show you ads. It's very, very common. And in most cases it's actually the norm, in almost any type of media. So I stand by my original point: showing ads is not "backwards", it's the norm.
brlewis 8y ago
billboards - usually don't track you With toll roads keeping a record of who travels on them when, it's only a matter of time until this revenue source gets tapped.
- criddell 8y ago
  There's nothing special about toll roads. A billboard company could put a camera on their bill board pointed at the nearby road and collect the same data.

LUmBULtERA 8y ago

This is a rather ironic statement, because this is just what many of us have done. I use ublock origin, read books from the library, watch Netflix without any ads (obviously), have no physical magazine or newspaper subscriptions. I (gasp) live in an area where I can walk to grocery stores and other shopping establishments. Okay, I guess I see occasional ads on the subway when I look up from my book...

joekrill 8y ago
I'm not sure how it's ironic in any way. Maybe in the Alanis Morissette usage of the word? Whether or not you go out of your way to avoid ads isn't really germane to my point. I'm simply suggesting that it's not at all "backwards" to show ads for subscription services. That's just a fact. Are there exceptions? Absolutely. But it's just simply not the case that the concept is unusual or backwards. Even if you think you aren't seeing ads, you're probably seeing product placements, or something similar. Anyway, I'll leave you with one of my favorite NewsRadio clips: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhrnMbhMgmw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhrnMbhMgmw

freeone3000 8y ago

Yes, yes, yes, and yes, all of those things are cancelled. And it's not a huge loss to do so.

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

rconti 8y ago

It makes their content borderline unusable. Half the time the page won't scroll at all (mouse or keyboard) and I have to reload. The ads shift around and are always covering a good chunk of real estate on my screen. When you scroll and now your mouse arrow is over an ad, scrolling stops working. There are ads horizontally and vertically. It's bloody awful.

ehsankia 8y ago

I'm not trying to be a smart-ass, but I actually don't use any of the services you listed above. I've tried cable a few times at a friends house was honestly blown away at how people could stand it.