More than two years ago, the attorneys general for Washington and Oregon each filed separate (but very similar) deceptive advertising claims against the makers of the popular 5-Hour Energy drinks, alleging that the ads misled consumers into believing that doctors recommend the product, and that the combination of ingredients provides some sort of benefit that is superior to just drinking coffee. In the last few days, judges in both those cases came to very different decisions. [More]
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Why Are Fewer People Watching The NFL So Far This Season?
By 10.6.16
Maybe it’s the lack of Tom Brady. Maybe it’s the election season. Maybe everyone’s out apple-picking instead of at home watching football. Maybe it’s because you’ve already cratered in your office fantasy football league because you invested too heavily in the Carolina Panthers? (Why are you looking at me like that?) Whatever the cause, fewer people seem to be watching pro football in 2016. [More]
Uber Thinks You Might Want To Look At A Bunch Of Ads During Your Ride
By 9.29.16
There are definitely some things people would like more of during an Uber ride — more control over music, more free cookies, etc. — but more advertising and content from brands trying to promote themselves? That might not appeal to everyone. [More]
Public Backlash Grows Against Proposed Ads In National Parks
By 9.27.16
Backlash is growing against a proposal by the National Park Service that would allow some corporate logos and signage within park boundaries, with the majority of folks who weighed in on the idea during a public commenting period saying they’re against it. [More]
AdBlock Plus Goes Into The Business Of Selling Ads: Wait, What?
By 9.13.16
AdBlock Plus, the popular browser extension that does exactly what it sounds like, has actually been in the ad business for a long time, letting unobtrusive “acceptable” ads through, taking a percentage of the proceeds. Some publishers characterize this as a shakedown, but the company behind AdBlock Plus says that it’s simply trying to make ads more pleasant and less disruptive for everyone. Now the company is going into the business of selling ads. [More]
CBS Will Let You Watch New Star Trek Show Without Commercials… For $4/Month More
By 8.31.16
As CBS prepares to put bona fide original content — like the upcoming online-only version of Big Brother and next year’s new Star Trek: Discovery series — on its $6/month All Access streaming service, the network realizes that hey, maybe people will pay a bit more to avoid having to watch all those flippin’ commercials. [More]
Twitter Wants Your Videos So Much, It Will Let You Keep Most Of The Ad Money
By 8.30.16
Hey, have you heard about video? You might have missed it, what with literally every social media platform all but begging you to post more and watch more at all times, but video is the new hotness. And to get individuals to post more video to their platform, Twitter’s willing to split the ad take. [More]
City-Owned Airport Can’t Reject Ads Just Because They Aren’t Selling A Product
By 8.26.16
If a city-owned facility is going to sell advertising space to bring in revenue, to what extent can the city restrict the content of those ads before crossing the line into government-ordered censorship? This week, a federal appeals court confirmed that when a city enacts a wholesale ban on certain types of ads, it’s gone too far. [More]
Facebook Now Using Your WhatsApp Data For Advertising
By 8.25.16
Back in 2014, Facebook acquired messaging service WhatsApp in a headline-grabbing $16 billion deal. WhatsApp, though, had been built around respecting users’ privacy, while Facebook is, well, the exact opposite of that. [More]
Facebook Testing Autoplay Video Ads That Have The Sound Turned On By Default
By 8.24.16
If you scroll through your Facebook newsfeed right now, you might see video ads that start to play, but silently, at least until/if you decide to turn the sound on. But according to a new report, Facebook confirms that it’s testing ads that will blast sound at full volume as soon as you encounter them. Because that’s a pleasant experience. [More]
Ad Self-Regulation Body Refers Sprint’s ‘50% Off’ Campaign To FCC
By 8.22.16
It’s really hard to get complex ideas across during a 30-second television commercial. However, the National Adverting Division, which investigates ad claims for the industry’s self-regulation body, says that Sprint still isn’t really getting across the subtleties of its promotions for new customers switching from other carriers, and has referred the ads to the Federal Communications Commission. [More]
Facebook Opens Up A Little About The Very Many (Many Many) Ways It Targets You
By 8.22.16
Facebook is, primarily, an advertising business. It doesn’t just want you to grudgingly put up with its ads, and it certainly doesn’t want you to block them. No, it wants you to love its ads, to embrace its ads, and to beg to be targeted to selectively. [More]
Pinterest Will Join All The Other Social Media Platforms With New “Promoted Video” Ads
By 8.17.16
When it comes to social media, sure, companies want to set themselves apart and be somehow different from all the rest. But they also don’t want to be left behind, which is probably why Pinterest is now joining the video advertising fray. [More]
Twitter Thinks You Might Like To Slap Brands’ “Promoted” Stickers All Over Your Photos
By 8.15.16
If you looked at the last Twitter you shared on Twitter and thought, “You know, I could really use some more corporate branding on here,” you’re in luck: the social media platform says its teaming up with companies to offer “Promoted #Stickers.” [More]
That Was Fast: Ad-Blocker Announces Block For Facebook’s Ad-Blocker Blocking
By 8.11.16
You use Facebook as a place to post and store photos, dumb memes, and articles about the political foofaraw du jour. Facebook uses Facebook as a way to gather direct profiles for billions of souls that can be advertised to, and as a way to make money selling those ads. There’s a natural tension there, when Facebook wants you to be the product and you would rather not. These days, that tension is evolving into something like an advertising cold war. [More]
T-Mobile Spent The Most On TV Ads Out Of All Major Carriers Last Month
By 8.10.16
If it seems like commercials for T-Mobile are everywhere, you aren’t wrong. Out of the four biggest mobile phone carriers, Big Magenta was the top spender on TV commercials in July, showing a spot for what the company called its “most epic deal ever” a total of 2,288 times on broadcast and cable TV. [More]
Facebook Thinks You Love Ads So Much, It’ll Helpfully Block Your Ad-Blocker For You
By 8.9.16
Facebook — one of the world’s largest advertising companies — magnanimously acknowledges that in your life on the internet, you’ve probably encountered some bad ads. And you almost certainly have, because online advertising can be obtrusive, creepy, and irritating to say the least. But Facebook thinks that they are so far ahead of the pack that you will actually want to see their ads, and so they’re going to circumvent your ad-blocker for your own good. [More]
Ad Watchdog: Comcast Should Stop Claiming “Fastest Internet In America”
By 8.9.16
If you live in one of the many parts of the country served by Comcast, you’ve likely seen the company’s nearly endless ads claiming that its Xfinity broadband “delivers the fastest internet in America,” and the “fastest, most reliable in-home WiFi.” However, an ad industry watchdog group has asked Comcast to rein in its bragging. [More]
