4 ms·

Microsoft is trying to build a large ad business also. Why would they release an ad blocker? I doubt we will ever see an ad blocker from any commercial entity.

Microsoft is trying to build a large ad business also. Why would they release an ad blocker? I doubt we will ever see an ad blocker from any commercial entity. Unless, of course, ad blocking is the only motivator behind the entire business. Somehow, I don't really expect that either. Consumers of ad blocking software probably wouldn't be the kind of people who pay for things like that :-)

incomethax 18y ago
The fact that they are trying to build an ad business can be countered with the fact that they have not yet built an ad business _successfully_. As such they don't really lose anything by taking away Google's core business in the form of an ad blocker. Microsoft has always been very worried about Google, and Balmer has compared Microsoft and Google as rivals in the software industry. If Microsoft can leverage their control over browsers in IE8 with an ad blocker, then they can potentially take a large chunk out of Google's bottom line, and make Google a much weaker 'rival'.
- snprbob86 18y ago
  And what about the tens of thousands of ASP.net developers who depend on ad revenue to pay the bills for Visual Studio and Windows Servers? Say what you will about Microsoft, but they depend on armies of developers who depend on ads. As such, do not expect them to produce an ad blocker. It would be nothing short of a developer relations disaster.
volida 18y ago
is it even legal to create an ad blocker or use one? assuming it's altering the content of the site it's directly violating the copyright of the site.
- pmorici 18y ago
  Of course it is legal. Is it illegal to throw away the advertisements from your newspaper before you read it?
  - axod 18y ago
    But is it legal for a 3rd party to scan in your newspaper, remove the ads, then print it out and sell it to you? That is a more accurate analogy. It's stealing and depriving the publisher of their income. In any event, getting past adblockers is really really simple. It always will be, and if you think an adblocker can block anywhere near all adverts, you should go read up on how things work.
    - Jem 18y ago
      Educate me - which adblocker is it that you know of that removes the adverts from websites and then sells the resulting ad-free site to the user? To suggest that blocking an advert is stealing assumes that the author of the web page would make money off that advert in the first place. Furthermore, that logic suggests that anyone who chooses to ignore advertising rather than just blocking it is also guilty because they're depriving the publisher of a potential income too. Total rubbish.
      - axod 18y ago
        Blocking an advert when viewing an ad supported website is stealing. You are stealing bandwidth, processing power, storage, electricity, etc Society is about give and take. Adblocking is about take.
        Jem 18y ago
        Like I said, by that logic anyone who chooses not to click adverts are also stealing. Do you click every advert you see just to make sure you're compensating for 'stolen' bandwidth, processing power, storage, electricity? FYI: I redistribute scripts under GPL licensing. I don't ask for donations, nor do I litter my pages with advertising. I consider that pretty "giving" - and no, I don't have problems with people 'stealing' my bandwidth, processing power, storage or electricity.
        axod 18y ago
        No, I treat websites with the benefit of the doubt. If they provide advertising that is useful to me, I click on it. By blocking all advertising on all websites you're sticking your fingers in your ears. Personally, I find adverts useful. Websites that resort to crappy user experience adverts - popups/unders/flash etc usually aren't worth visiting in the first place.
- staticshock 18y ago
  is it illegal to improperly render a website? if so, then, boy, are some browser vendors going to be sued out of business. and how.

incomethax 18y ago

The fact that they are trying to build an ad business can be countered with the fact that they have not yet built an ad business _successfully_. As such they don't really lose anything by taking away Google's core business in the form of an ad blocker. Microsoft has always been very worried about Google, and Balmer has compared Microsoft and Google as rivals in the software industry. If Microsoft can leverage their control over browsers in IE8 with an ad blocker, then they can potentially take a large chunk out of Google's bottom line, and make Google a much weaker 'rival'.

snprbob86 18y ago
And what about the tens of thousands of ASP.net developers who depend on ad revenue to pay the bills for Visual Studio and Windows Servers? Say what you will about Microsoft, but they depend on armies of developers who depend on ads. As such, do not expect them to produce an ad blocker. It would be nothing short of a developer relations disaster.

volida 18y ago

is it even legal to create an ad blocker or use one? assuming it's altering the content of the site it's directly violating the copyright of the site.

pmorici 18y ago
Of course it is legal. Is it illegal to throw away the advertisements from your newspaper before you read it?
- axod 18y ago
  But is it legal for a 3rd party to scan in your newspaper, remove the ads, then print it out and sell it to you? That is a more accurate analogy. It's stealing and depriving the publisher of their income. In any event, getting past adblockers is really really simple. It always will be, and if you think an adblocker can block anywhere near all adverts, you should go read up on how things work.
  - Jem 18y ago
    Educate me - which adblocker is it that you know of that removes the adverts from websites and then sells the resulting ad-free site to the user? To suggest that blocking an advert is stealing assumes that the author of the web page would make money off that advert in the first place. Furthermore, that logic suggests that anyone who chooses to ignore advertising rather than just blocking it is also guilty because they're depriving the publisher of a potential income too. Total rubbish.
    - axod 18y ago
      Blocking an advert when viewing an ad supported website is stealing. You are stealing bandwidth, processing power, storage, electricity, etc Society is about give and take. Adblocking is about take.
      - Jem 18y ago
        Like I said, by that logic anyone who chooses not to click adverts are also stealing. Do you click every advert you see just to make sure you're compensating for 'stolen' bandwidth, processing power, storage, electricity? FYI: I redistribute scripts under GPL licensing. I don't ask for donations, nor do I litter my pages with advertising. I consider that pretty "giving" - and no, I don't have problems with people 'stealing' my bandwidth, processing power, storage or electricity.
        axod 18y ago
        No, I treat websites with the benefit of the doubt. If they provide advertising that is useful to me, I click on it. By blocking all advertising on all websites you're sticking your fingers in your ears. Personally, I find adverts useful. Websites that resort to crappy user experience adverts - popups/unders/flash etc usually aren't worth visiting in the first place.
staticshock 18y ago
is it illegal to improperly render a website? if so, then, boy, are some browser vendors going to be sued out of business. and how.