Will Mainstream Media Embrace Adblockers?

Blarkon writes "Slashdotters are aware of and often use Adblock Plus," and notes that "if newspapers wanted to hit the online content industry hard right now, they would be running non-stop information about how to obtain and use Adblock Plus.' That a scorched-earth approach to blocking Internet advertising through AdBlock Plus might collapse free online competitors by starving them of revenue. If more people are aware of Adblock plus, it will be more tempting for other browser manufacturers to include similar ad blocking functionality. Might Rupert Murdoch's apparent 'traffic killing' move to paywall content be a desperate gamble to avoid the impact of a future crash in the ad-supported online business model caused by everyone's browser including something like Adblock Plus?"

Comments

There are other ad-blockers

[davidwr]

This sounds like a slashvertisement.

Firefox users should give NoScript a try, it does a lot more than just block ads.

IE users should give Firefox a try.

Re:No problem. So what's the alternative?

[earnest murderer]

There's certainly some truth to the idea that they are done, in their current form...

But when I'm sitting here thinking over a cup of hot fresh Folgers dark roast coffee one thing comes to mind. That with quality content, public radio and TV stations have a (relatively) easy time getting people to *give* them money for their "free" content. Give as in some have the nicest studios in the area (and some I suppose squeak by in areas where facts have a liberal bias). And much like the free samples of Jiffy Pop and Movie Time popcorn available at Costco today, it may be abused but it does return a net positive.

So while you are easing back into your Herman Miller "Aeron" chair (now available in "True Black!") consider that the era of $150+ dollar per year for a hand delivered stack of syndicated features and a few sheets of questionable local content may be over. The Gizmodo regurgitation engine doesn't have to be the end result. Some journalists are doing just fine with a new name tag and avoiding maintenance on a lavish building and fleet of trucks.