AdBlock vs AdSense solution proposal

looking for a solution against adblockers

[bbcbbc]

Looking how adblockers are hitting AdSense scene, there are two kinds of reactions:

- Site owners who let the thing going and try to adapt their sites to a new Internet Era.
- Site owners who does not want to let AdBlockers kill the Internet just like it is now, grown free and big thanks to ads.

I'm on the second group, so I would like to share what I think it could be a possible solution for the problem: the (already criticized) "Two Speed Internet", applied to AdBlockers world.

The only and one premise is:

- If people use AdBlockers because ads are annoying, then lets make AdBlockers annoying to users.


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Proposal
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What is needed:
1 A big number of webmasters all over the world who wants to enroll the movement.
2 One script, with this features:

- A set of static .js files is not sure, because they could be easily blocked like the ad's codes. Instead, a PHP code that dinamically generate and injects .js files with random file names and function names.
- The script should be able to detect AdBlockers and, if found, then slow the load speed of the page contents. Unannounced and with no alerts to the user. Instead of blocking the content.

Then let the (real) rumor grow viral ... that AdBlockers slow Internet connection.


If you want me to pay for you to see my site contents for free and with no ads, I can be ok with that, but then you will fall into slow Internet.


The goal:
Make people think that AdBlockers are slowing their Internet connection. Even when there's no anti AdBlock installed and their connections are slow by any other cause, they won't know, and many of them will consider AdBlockers as malware.


There would be more options, maybe injecting into the page functions that need to be checked by AdBlock, forcing the script to work more. Please, notice that I'm looking to open a discussion to bring a solution to the problem.

[MrSavage]

Don't forget the adblocker company gets a cut too. If PageFair paid/pays them less, then maybe PageFair would need to take less of a cut from us.

[trebuchet]

That's right. So the publisher still publishes and ads still appear on their site, except now there are three middlemen taking their cut from ad revenue, instead of just one. It's nothing more than electronic extortion. Which is why I object to Pagefair being regularly touted as an authority on adblocking. They're not an authority, they're a vested interest trying to make money from the whole thing.

[7_Driver]

Yes, I have tried Pagefair - just to count AdBlock users and get an idea of the size of the problem - I'm not showing their ads.

If they're accurate, only about 6% of my users are using AdBlock - so it's not a major headache for me right now.

I'd be interested to know if there are any scripts that block AdBlock users from accessing content - I haven't found much - what are people using?

[explorador]

I understand the idea, but I don't see anything positive, if all I see danger on such approach.

100% times I stay away of posting anything that might sound "disapproving", if any I can only have an opinion about it, posting to disagree on personal opinions doesn't really make sense, each person can do whatever they want to, but in this case I feel free to post this way regardless of how it sounds, why? because there is nothing positive to the user, and there is danger to be qualified as malware.

Search engines started processing javascript a while ago, so they will surely measure your site speed and even appearance (there are algos to let machines "see" your page) and the results of the idea will not be good, SE's judge speed too. There are many details and risks on this, but just remember, people seeing a site they don't like brings the back button, click again and stay there, or open several tabs and close the slow or ugly ones.

My opinion has nothing to do with adsense, adblocking, etc, just about risks on making your site less-good. Sounds to me as self sabotage. Webmasterworld per example, has lots of free good advice, there is a paid section, and for years there have been few invitations to subscribe, the sites remains a good quality place, instead of being slower for us compared to the private area. Making this forum slow to promote subscription... I don't know how people would react.

[morpheus83]

Instead of slowing the page down, which actually disrupts the user behavior, which majority of the users would not be able to connect the dots that the website is doing it because he is running an ad blocker.

If we all were to come together and just display a unified message SOPA style. It will make a lot of difference. No one likes ads, that's a fact, but then that is also the reason a 22 minute show has a run time of 30 minutes. It are these ads which pay my bills and give me the incentive to make content.

in the end if I cant show ads to a reader, then I would prefer to not have such a reader.

[netmeg]

If we all were to come together and just display a unified message SOPA style.

Don't hang your hopes on that, because it will never happen. There is no unified consensus on the issue, even among publishers.

[morpheus83]

Cant we try to unite the ones which share the same thoughts? Speaking of which what are yours?

[bbcbbc]

I will insert here again the main point of my proposal:

- If people use AdBlockers because ads are annoying, then lets make AdBlockers annoying for people.

I think that it doesn't matter if there're messages SOPA style or an slow-load version of the site with adblock users ... but if most of publishers unite into one group or another (or maybe other ideas) then people will start considering adblock as a problem.

My idea was to open a discussion here to get to a unified consensus.

[MrSavage]

All you can really do is LOL when you consider that it's an Adsense forum, thus we should be at least semi-dependent on Adsense revenues. So when people here are pro adblocker and condone the concept and or practice? When that happens, you know it's time for a good 'ol LOL. I commend the effort put forward, but when you can't find a sliver of "we're all in this together" maybe the ultimate solution is to find another revenue source or at least decide for yourself if one is going to magically appear that is makes your webmastering time and effort fruitful.

[bbcbbc]

Maybe this thread is not for you MrSavage or for pro-adblockers people, but it is for publishers that want to solve this issue, and I'm sure there are a lot of them here.

[netmeg]

Cant we try to unite the ones which share the same thoughts? Speaking of which what are yours?

If people use AdBlockers because ads are annoying, then lets make AdBlockers annoying for people.

My thoughts are that under no circumstances will I ever intentionally make it annoying for my people, that ad blockers are inevitable and usage will only grow, and that it's up to me find a way to earn a living (or at least cover costs) without pissing off my users. And if and when I can't do that, then I will find something else to do (actually I already have something else to do). The world will not crumble if I don't publish. Just like 99.9999% of the content on the internet, I am replaceable. You all of course should do whatever you want or feel you need to. But from where I sit, the barn door is open and the horses have fled. Ad blockers are here to stay. If you have to use a hammer to convince people to use your website the way you want them to, well, you're probably already in trouble.

[explorador]

bbcbbc: Maybe this thread is not for you MrSavage or for pro-adblockers people, but it is for publishers that want to solve this issue, and I'm sure there are a lot of them here.

solving the issue has many options. The primary goal should be to keep earnings coming to a well established site while keeping visitors coming back for more content/stuff, and that involves a good user experience (which has many angles too). Hurting in any way the speed is only ugly-hit-#2 when ad-blocking is your ugly-hit-#1. Search engines can (now) get javascript so, doesn't sound good to me.

Been away on a trip so while I'm reading the threads I see missing stuff, posts, quotes to stuff that's not there anymore, difficult to get an idea of what has been going on. I have many suggestions and have posted the ideas, also invited people to wonder, solutions, not complications but I see some more kinda gray-clouded on the problem. Among the many ideas we can discuss, if we want to stay simple and pure to the problem: it's not so much about doing whatever to ad blocking, but instead just showing ads people can see. Tangor has mentioned good points on this that many just rely on other systems that get blocked and that's the problem. The other problem is selling your own ads and using your (or third party) system that just displays ads. Its even easy to mix them together (when adsense doesn't show up, then show an ad from your inventory).

Sorry if I sound dumb or too naive, but two banks keeps calling me to offer extra credit cards, it's annoying I don't need it. So I blocked the numbers, they use other telephone numbers to get to my phone, that's the solution they got? finding a way to show me what I don't want to see? it's the same here, some people don't want ads, that's fine, but content is king and most are not even talking about it, just about placing ads.

[trebuchet]

If people use AdBlockers because ads are annoying, then lets make AdBlockers annoying for people.

The problem is that they won't think that way. They'll equate site performance with your site, not with whatever extensions they are running. If your site loads slowly, they'll think it's your site that's annoying, not adblockers.

Maybe this thread is not for you MrSavage or for pro-adblockers people, but it is for publishers that want to solve this issue

Trouble is, you're not "solving" the issue. You're adopting coercive measures against people who have adopted adblocking. Consumers respond to many things but being punished or hamstrung is not one of them.

None of that should be taken as an endorsement of adblockers or the adblocking cheer squad here either. I find a lot of the arguments in favour of adblocking to be exaggerated. There's a lot of predictions about the future that are sheer baloney (check the Digicel thread, for one example). But netmeg is right about the fact that adblocking is not going away anytime soon. Better to watch carefully and fish the change of tide, rather than try to hold it back.

[MrSavage]

I've read enough of these adblocking threads to become sick of the rhetoric. If those with the greatest wisdom suggest it's here to stay, and I'm not arguing that it isn't, then perhaps the proposal/facts to the OP is this.

a) Adsense incomes will only continue to decline (fact based on prediction that adblockers are amazing, better for the web and will become baked in)
b) The only proposal as it relates to Adsense is to plan your exit strategy now. People apparently don't see this going away, the blocking mentality is going rule the web. If that's true then there is no real solution that includes Adsense.

So the proposal should really just be about exit strategy, as an Adsense publisher? Afterall, the theme here is Adsense (it's the Adsense forum) and we're strategizing on that product, not every other product or income generating concept out there. As in, we're Adsense publishers, how do react to this technology. If it's "fait de complet" as some suggest, then the only responsible suggestion would be to say that Adsense dependency at this stage of webmastering is the kiss of death. Or am I misreading the people who know more about everything than I do?

[bbcbbc]

The problem is that they won't think that way. They'll equate site performance with your site

Yes, if it is only my site that loads slow, there should be consensus

Search engines can (now) get javascript so, doesn't sound good to me.

I agree, that's why I suggest a PHP script able to delay the load of some page elements, i.e. like lazy-load scripts for images do, while showing a loading animation and/or maybe one 'AdBlock' text, so people knows that adblocking is slowing the page load.

[morpheus83]

@netmeg agree with you here, no one and no content is purely indispensable. Even I would want to dilute or to say the least alter the experience of an user with an ad-blocker. But I would still want to in a polite way showcase to the people using ad-blockers on the efforts we put to create the content and they using ad-blockers slows our efforts.

In another perspective torrent a TV show and a movie and if convicted you are practically screwed. In the end you are robbing the producer or channel from the ad revenue or from the sale of the product. How is an ad-blocker any different?

[trebuchet]

If those with the greatest wisdom suggest it's here to stay, and I'm not arguing that it isn't

I don't think there's much wisdom involved, Mr S, just observation and common sense. Adblocking has become very popular. A lot of techs are recommending it. It's received a lot of press coverage. Millions have installed. They will keep using adblockers until there's some incentive (or, less likely, some disincentive) to stop using them.

I don't like adblocking any more than you. I think it's a slap in the face to genuine and independent creators of original content. I think it will change things for the worse and lead to new content either drying up or being controlled by vested interests. I think the adblock creators who demand money from ad networks are little better than thieves. But I'm also realistic about the whole thing and I'm trying to find a working solution that doesn't involve just giving up. To that end I admire OP's initiative but I don't think slowing down pageloads is going to cut the mustard.

[nomis5]

One line of thought which has not really been explored enough is what is G going to do about ad-blocking. If we had some idea on that (we can put ourselves in their position), then it might shed some light on where this is all going.

Will they ignore ad blockers and let Adsense just slowly fail? That's possible, they might now see Adsense as too much competition for their own ads.

Maybe they will swallow up the ad blocking companies and slowly let only Adsense ads appear. that would be a neat solution for them! An easy way to get rid of the existing competition

Maybe they will come up with a compromise. For example add a bar to the SERPS indicating download speed. That would jolt the main culprits in this whole ad blocking into action.

Incorporate download speed into SERPS algo as a major factor, much more major than now?

As I say, if we understand how G see this it may well point out a path for the future in how we approach the problem.

[trebuchet]

Yes, Google's lack of response has been a problem. If we knew their position then it might make forward planning a little easier. I doubt they'll try purchasing adblock producers because for every one they swallow another three will spring up. Killing off Adsense, or reforming it into a premium ad network, is a more likely option. A guy I know reckons G might start letting publishers onto the adblock whitelist, in return for a greater cut of ad revenue. But they're all guesses really.

Speaking of adblock producers... I noticed yesterday one of the 'independent' sellers of adblock browsers having a colossal bitch because Eyeo has apparently trademarked the names 'Adblock' and 'Adblocking' and taken action against others using those terms. This meant he had to retitle and rebadge the adblock browser he sells on iTunes Connect. Parasites one and all.