Block That Ad!

Marquel, TPVs NYTimes Closing The Barn Door  Section correspondent, was watching planes pass by above when he read Ad Blockers and the Nuisance at the Heart of the Modern Web.

The adoption of ad-blocking technology is rising steeply. Some see an existential threat to online content as we know it, but others see a new business niche.

Marquel read and re-read the story but couldn’t figure out what the niche was. If everybody uses ad blockers, there goes the internet…And Marquel!!!!.

Certainly Marquel is neither an idiot nor illiterate. The Times article identifies the niche as “nonintrusive.” The market for nonintrusive ads is apparently what will save the web. But ad blockers don’t block just intrusive ads. They just block ads. It’s true if ads were all nonintrusive, the market for ad blockers would not have developed. But now that the public is ripe for ad blockers, how does this niche work? It’s gone already! The Times has never been really good at timing or temporality generally.

Look at the Gulf of Tonkin. It was the fictitious attack upon us that led to the Vietnam War. But the war caused the gulf of Tonkin story, not vice versa. Marquel tried to refocus. He arranged an interview with the ad blockers.

“One that people don’t want to see.” The ad blocker said.

“If done the right way, if they’re truly entertaining, are short, and don’t obscure the screen, people don’t mind seeing them.” He said.

“They can’t.” He announced.

“Because we make the nonintrusive ads. They bypass the blocker.” He said.

“Not really because the ethics of ad blocking have not yet been worked out.” He said.

“That depends on whether we can stay one step ahead of them. I think we can.” He said.

“Not really until we reach a critical mass. Meanwhile we market our list of users so they get email ads.” He said.

“Commercial communications.” He corrected me.

“It’s not spam, it’s commercial communication.” He noted.

“The walk in tub.” He said.

“You won the Lottery, um, we’re holding $10 billion in funds for you, who’s who, and the UPS shipment that can’t be delivered without your credit card number.” He said, puffing out his chest and smiling.

“We gotta make money.” He said.

“And coders need to be paid.” He said.