No, free in this context meaning they aren't paying upfront with cash. So yes, ads do work, and they allow people without other means to monetize their attentio

No, free in this context meaning they aren't paying upfront with cash. So yes, ads do work, and they allow people without other means to monetize their attention in real-time. They also own their attention and are perfectly capable of spending it however they want, on whatever they want, without any approval of what they need by you or anyone else.