4 ms·

Honestly maybe we should just ban all advertising? Advertising is generally a zero sum game - there’s no meaningful difference if you spend 5M on ads and your c

Honestly maybe we should just ban all advertising? Advertising is generally a zero sum game - there’s no meaningful difference if you spend 5M on ads and your competitors spend 5M on ads or you spend 0 and your competitors spend 0. There is a difference if you can spend 20M and your competitors can only spend 5M, but that’s one way larger companies kill competition.

Analemma_ 3y ago
Right now this would be seen as impossibly radical, but I am increasingly of the opinion that advertising will someday be totally banned and our descendants will look back on it as barbaric. "You allowed corporations to spy on you and psychologically abuse you, instilling feelings of insecurity and inadequacy, everywhere you went? Why?"
digging 3y ago
Advertising isn't a zero sum game because not all ad dollars are spent equally. Two companies can spend $5M each and get different results. One main variable is, to what degree do their ads exploit and abuse human neurology? Advertising is a hostile action. It's parasitic. Almost all forms of advertising ought to be illegal in a reasonable society.
- robertlagrant 3y ago
  This is silly. If I remember a building company name when I want to make a change to my house, that's not abusing my neurology.
scotty79 3y ago
It's a negative sum game. I'd happily ban all advertising and replaced it with government managed services and products dictionary where suppliers would put their offers with prices. It would also be a hub of technical information about the products and their reviews. Also information about companies operating on the market. Conduct, ownership structure, financial information, everything. Basically all the market information on a silver platter for every customer and business to take.
- vlovich123 3y ago
  Negative sum for society but zero sum for the players
  - scotty79 3y ago
    Producing advertising metrials isn't free. So it's a negative for everybody.
- JAlexoid 3y ago
  And then the likes of Donald comes in and decides, that anyone that didn't support his campaign isn't worthy to be listed in the government "dictionary"(it's directory). Yeah... I'll live with bad advertising, rather than pave the way to 1984.
  - vlovich123 3y ago
    Advertising has nothing to do with political speech, free speech, or whether or not you can have a business. I think it’s a leap to claim that regulating and restricting some forms of commercial speech (equally across the board for all players btw) is on the road to 1984.
    - JAlexoid 3y ago
      I was responding to the proposal to have a government run directory, to replace all and any advertising. Advertising is also a matter of freedom of speech. Political speech is absolutely advertising... and a business exists exclusively based on the ability to disseminate information about the existence of a business (aka advertising) What is "commercial speech"? It's one thing to talk about billboards, that take up public space... and advertising in general.
  - scotty79 3y ago
    Government already controls the market. It sets the rules what's allowed and what's not. It might as well do it efficiently and while providing accurate information to the customers.

Analemma_ 3y ago

Right now this would be seen as impossibly radical, but I am increasingly of the opinion that advertising will someday be totally banned and our descendants will look back on it as barbaric. "You allowed corporations to spy on you and psychologically abuse you, instilling feelings of insecurity and inadequacy, everywhere you went? Why?"

digging 3y ago

Advertising isn't a zero sum game because not all ad dollars are spent equally. Two companies can spend $5M each and get different results. One main variable is, to what degree do their ads exploit and abuse human neurology? Advertising is a hostile action. It's parasitic. Almost all forms of advertising ought to be illegal in a reasonable society.

robertlagrant 3y ago
This is silly. If I remember a building company name when I want to make a change to my house, that's not abusing my neurology.

scotty79 3y ago

It's a negative sum game. I'd happily ban all advertising and replaced it with government managed services and products dictionary where suppliers would put their offers with prices. It would also be a hub of technical information about the products and their reviews. Also information about companies operating on the market. Conduct, ownership structure, financial information, everything. Basically all the market information on a silver platter for every customer and business to take.

vlovich123 3y ago
Negative sum for society but zero sum for the players
- scotty79 3y ago
  Producing advertising metrials isn't free. So it's a negative for everybody.
JAlexoid 3y ago
And then the likes of Donald comes in and decides, that anyone that didn't support his campaign isn't worthy to be listed in the government "dictionary"(it's directory). Yeah... I'll live with bad advertising, rather than pave the way to 1984.
- vlovich123 3y ago
  Advertising has nothing to do with political speech, free speech, or whether or not you can have a business. I think it’s a leap to claim that regulating and restricting some forms of commercial speech (equally across the board for all players btw) is on the road to 1984.
  - JAlexoid 3y ago
    I was responding to the proposal to have a government run directory, to replace all and any advertising. Advertising is also a matter of freedom of speech. Political speech is absolutely advertising... and a business exists exclusively based on the ability to disseminate information about the existence of a business (aka advertising) What is "commercial speech"? It's one thing to talk about billboards, that take up public space... and advertising in general.
- scotty79 3y ago
  Government already controls the market. It sets the rules what's allowed and what's not. It might as well do it efficiently and while providing accurate information to the customers.