It is believed by some that digital technology is a simply free service. As time has passed though people have realised that this is exactly what it isn't, and our own personal data is the actual product in return for the service. This same data ends up getting sold to advertisers in a 'totally unregulated' system that makes it so that users get presented with ads that exactly match aspects like their interests, demographics and gender identity. Services like Facebook allow this to be possible and is part of what's referred to as the: 'world of surveillance capitalism.' For advertisers this is of quite major benefit, however this isn't omnipresent. John Wanamaker for example, a US department store magnate, said that: 'Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is, I don't know which half.' Google and Facebook's arrival to the internet though, proved that this wouldn't always be the case since the technology that they implemented made it so that users would only presented with certain ads depending on their likelihood to be receptive towards them. This ensured that money from advertisers' was always being spent in the right places. As could be anticipated, advertisers' money diverted from print and TV to companies like Google. However tech advertising is now catching flack for 'crappy advertising accompanied by even crappier viewing experiences.' With this it's not shocking that a rise in the use of ad blockers is taking place. This isn't being regarded as the guest problem though. Rather the issue is 'how many people are actually seeing these ads' ignoring fraudulent elements like bots. With this how effective the advertising really is is questionable.
- Facebook holds 98 data points on every user
- Procter & Gamble announced that it would make $1bn in savings by targeting consumers through digital and social media
- Financial Times 28/02 - 2017 will be the year when advertisers spend more online than they do on TV
- Ad blocking to grow to 87 million US web users in 2017
- For Every $3 Spent on Digital Ads, Fraud Takes $1
- Some $18.5 Billion Will Be Lost To Ad Fraud In 2015
This article is quite telling into the more darker elements of the advertising industry. Our information is susceptible to being sold in order to advertise things to us. While this raises the issue of a breach of privacy taking place, companies like Google are able to utilise it and derive a high amount of benefit from it. With this it's highly likely that online advertising will continue rather than stagnate. At the same time though, the fact that it's now known that bots are involved in the industry makes you question how useful ads online actually are. Is traffic coming in from actual people, or just machines?
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