Welcome to the ad-free internet
As the rich pay to banish commercials, advertisers hunt for their attention elsewhere
For a preview of what lies wrapped beneath the Christmas tree, log in to Facebook. The social network tracks its users’ behaviour so intimately that it is able to personalise adverts with a precision that sometimes verges on mind-reading. Its ad-stuffed newsfeed at this time of year embodies the internet’s great trade-off: consumers enjoy free services, but must submit to bombardment with commercials from companies that know who has been naughty or nice.
This article appeared in the Business section of the print edition under the headline “Welcome to the ad-free internet”
Business December 16th 2023
- Welcome to the ad-free internet
- What Google’s antitrust defeat means for the app economy
- German business is fed up with a government in disarray
- Will TikTok’s GoTo gambit save its Indonesian business?
- How to master the art of delegation
- Boneheaded anti-immigration politicians are throttling globalisation
From the December 16th 2023 edition
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