It's an Ad, Ad, Ad, Ad World

Is It Wrong to Block Ads on Free Sites?

All of us use ad-supported Web sites. Does that mean that we're duty-bound to support ads? Absolutely, say advertisers. "Users must accept the quid pro quo of advertising," says Greg Stuart, head of the Internet Advertising Bureau, an online advertising trade association. "They're getting something for free or at a reduced cost. And yes, blocking ads violates that implied contract."

That basic deal seems to be acceptable to most users and sites. After all, successful ad-free sites that charge subscription fees are as rare as hen's teeth. Porn sites aside, you could count them on a couple of hands. Without advertisements, the Web as we know it would vanish faster than a pop-up slain by AdSubtract.

Of course, some sites don't want to depend on users' choosing not to block ads. If more sites adopt software like MediaBeam's AdKey, which denies site access to visitors who block the site's ads, users may feel more pressure to accede to this unspoken contract. But will users give in? "Most people would equate ad filters with a TV remote used to switch the channel when an ad comes on," says Junkbuster's Jason Catlett. Ed English of AdSubtract puts it even more bluntly. "Are you obligated to read every single ad that's in a print magazine or a newspaper?" he asks. "Of course not."

Blocking the most intrusive ads is an easier call. After all, you may put up with a perfumed card inserted into a magazine, but would you feel as generous if it popped out and spritzed you in the eye?

For some ad-blocking proponents, the fundamental issue is not ethical but practical. "It's like it's never enough," says AdSubtract's English. Banners led to animated GIFs, which led to Flash animations, which begat pop-ups and pop-unders. Ads litter our drives with temporary files, hog CPU resources, and consume bandwidth. In the end, English says, "People have a right to control what appears on their computer."

My computer, my bandwidth, my life. Now them's fightin' words.