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Google Forbids Advertising On Glass

An anonymous reader writes "Contrary to widespread thought, Google Glass will not be an advertising platform: 'Google Inc has lately told app developers that they are not allowed to present ads to Google Glass users and they are also not permitted to sell users' personal and private information for the fulfillment of advertising needs. The internet company has explicitly and openly said that the Glass platform should and must be clean and clear of any ads whatsoever, because the technology is designed to facilitate internet browsing and other related activities, therefore, the featured podium cannot be used to advertise products as it will cause the user experience to diminish.' Seems like Google is going for hardware-only revenue on this one." You're not supposed to resell the Glass hardware, either.

26 of 274 comments (clear)

  1. Just means they will make their money another way by ModernGeek · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I have a hard time believing that they will make all their revenue on hardware alone. They will have access to search and activity data combined with a feed that shows people's whereabouts and habits. This marketing data will be worth way more than any direct advertising.

    --
    Sig: I stole this sig.
  2. Hardware revenue? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    > Seems like Google is going for hardware-only revenue on this one

    Or, you know, collecting user data such as location, what the user is looking at and browsing, and so on. Which then in turn can be used to target advertising.

  3. what's the difference? and who does this benefit? by F9rDT3ZE · · Score: 4, Interesting

    what is the difference between "presenting ads to Google glass users" and "internet browsing"? Is Glass going to come with built-in ad-blockers for all web pages? Are they going to build special software to prohibit Glass-specific advertising on web pages that are not in any kind of partnership with Glass? This seems to me like a way of controlling the advertising revenue streams for Google more than anything else, since Google's pages are larded with ads and Glass will inherently drive traffic to those pages, both inside and outside of the Glass environment. I wonder if it even raises antitrust implications, as it tremendously biases the products toward Google's advertising & commerce platforms while pushing others out.

  4. Whatever by afxgrin · · Score: 4, Insightful

    They say this now but after Microsoft or Apple sell an ad supported product for cheaper they'll change their minds quickly.

    1. Re:Whatever by afxgrin · · Score: 3, Interesting

      My point is that if it is successful as a product competitors will attempt to recreate a similar experience and may not see any issue with having ads. If ads become 'workable' into the product it will likely be used to subsidize the cost of the competing product hence making a lower priced product with similar or the same functionality. For Google to stay competitive in the long road they would likely need to implement ads. Turning on intrusive ads now would be awful if they want consumer adoption of the product.

  5. Contrary to widespread thought... by rodrigoandrade · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Contrary to widespread thought, Google Glass will not be an advertising platform... yet!

  6. Lol by TheSkepticalOptimist · · Score: 4, Insightful

    But "sponsored notices" I am sure will be fully supported.

    --
    I haven't thought of anything clever to put here, but then again most of you haven't either.
  7. Re:I think I'll wait for something Free by DragonWriter · · Score: 5, Interesting

    As in libre Free. You can't prevent ads without either an onerous EULA with over-the-top enforcement or some hardcore DRM.

    The no ads is a provision of the agreement required to use the API that lets web apps connect to glass, its not enforced by EULA or DRM

  8. Re:Awesome by slashmydots · · Score: 4, Funny

    It's distracting, causes ADD, causes eye strain, will get you mugged, people will use it while driving, induces battery phobia to the max, looks idiotic, causes memory degradation in your brain, and the controls are significantly less fast than a PC, laptop, tablet, or cell phone. Is that a good start?

  9. Re:I think I'll wait for something Free by Thud457 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Leela: Didn't you have ads in the 21st century?"

    Fry: Well sure, but not in our dreams. Only on TV and radio, and in magazines, and movies, and at ball games... and on buses and milk cartons and t-shirts, and bananas and written on the sky. But not in dreams, no siree.

    --

    the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

  10. Cable TV by femtobyte · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Remember how Cable TV started out with no advertisements, to give people a good reason to plunk down big wads of cash every month for stuff like what they got free over the airwaves? Remember how short that lasted, once cable acceptance picked up? This no-ads/tracking thing is just a phase to get Google Glasses in front of everyone's eyeballs; then we'll get ads full blast.

    1. Re:Cable TV by femtobyte · · Score: 4, Insightful

      No, the first models won't be recording all the time; no they won't hide anything. By the time Google enables recording, it'll be perfectly in the open and normal ("what kind of tinfoil-hatted nutter would care about a few frame grabs in return for all these nifty free services?") --- and it won't matter what your personal privacy votes are, because your visiting house-guests will record your life and habits for you. People choose to pay for stuff all the time --- and still get ads/tracking/intrusiveness added in to paid products. If it's a conspiracy to think that gGlass will follow the same patterns of increasing advertiser pervasiveness as TV, ebooks, music, games, credit cards, magazines, search engines, etc., then I guess I am a conspiracy nut.

  11. Re:Can't resell it... what?! I hope CM is okay... by drakaan · · Score: 5, Informative

    The no resale limitation appears to be on the developer version that is out now. If they did that with the commercial one, they would have a giant shitstorm on their hands, both PR and legal.

    --
    "Murphy was an optimist" - O'Toole's commentary on Murphy's Law
  12. Ads in glass apps different from ads in browser by rs1n · · Score: 4, Informative

    Google doesn't want developers to incorporate ads into their apps for glass. Lots of app developers create a "free" version of their app that is supported through advertising. It's this particular aspect of advertising that Google is trying to prevent from happening.

  13. Re:Just means they will make their money another w by prelelat · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I think you're totally correct,

    While apple has been about the walled garden, google has been about the green valley with large high hills surrounding that discourage you to leave(but you can). Google is into building devices and products that make you use their other services that generate more value through advertisement and data collection. Google doesn't need to get your money from google glass after you buy it, because chances are you are going to use google.com, gmail and probably other services as well from them. These as we all know already track the information they are banning on glass anyways. The device is made to drive users to the other advertisement revenue streams and the larger the adoption of it(like the android phones) the larger their market share is for other services.

    Most of the people I know that use an android phone use gmail and google search built in as well as their play store and some of the other apps. This is the driving force behind android and glass.

  14. Re:I think I'll wait for something Free by bfandreas · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This also means that users can simply uninstall the app. Since it isn't Google that's doing the ads it shhould be fairly easy to get rid of the offender.

    People will not ever get used to having apps constantly and without provocation pushed into their face. You know what you get when you load a website. You know what you get when your turn on your TV or radio. But walking down the street just to have the latest Amazon sale pushed into your peripheral vision will mean that the app will be deinstalled.

    What it won't prevent is showing those email notifications of that shop you once did business with and that has been pestering you ever since. And you will get solicited ads when you ask where to go for lunch. These informations will propably be pulled right off Google Maps and I highly suspect that this is where Google will be making its money.

    Also bear in mind that this thing isn't always on. You will either have to wake it up by fondling it or sloooowly lifting your head. So shoving unsolicited ads into your vision wouldn't work most of the time since it most likely will be turned off. Battery life isn't that good on that thing to have it turned on the whole day.

    --
    20 minutes into the future
  15. Hardware Only? False Conclusion by Bob9113 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Seems like Google is going for hardware-only revenue on this one.

    That conclusion is not supported by the fact that Google does not allow advertising on Google Glass. Google Glass is not exclusively an output device, it is also a sensor array. The data collected by the sensor array would be very valuable to Google's surveillance and analytics programs. Whether Google will store, use, or distribute any of the data collected by the Google Glass sensors has not, as far as I know, been addressed.

    Generally speaking, Google seems to have a very solid understanding that it is inexpensive to store data and a significant opportunity cost to discard it.

  16. Re:Just means they will make their money another w by Cinder6 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's important to note that only third-party developers are prohibited from placing ads; Google isn't bound by the same rules. My tinfoil-hat conspiracy theory says they want to get people used to Glass first, and then start slowly implementing ads until they feel commonplace and accepted. If Glass is plastered with ads from the beginning, no one will use it, and Google knows this.

    That said, it would be great if it never has ads. I would be willing to pay more (were I in the market for Glass) for no ads on a device such as this.

    --
    If you can't convince them, convict them.
  17. Re:I think I'll wait for something Free by Angostura · · Score: 4, Informative

    You appear to be confusing the end user with the service/app provider.

  18. Re:Just means they will make their money another w by amRadioHed · · Score: 3, Insightful

    They don't want you selling it because it's a development device that is only being sent to a select group of people. Your reason doesn't even make sense, if it was sold the new owner would obviously use it with their own account.

    --
    We hope your rules and wisdom choke you / Now we are one in everlasting peace
  19. Prevent a Siri by tuppe666 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    http://www.inquisitr.com/256025/steve-wozniak-says-apple-ruined-siri-technology-after-acquisition/ Here is Steve Wozniak showing how siri was destroyed by Apple advertising “What are the five largest lakes in California?” and “What are the prime numbers greater than 87?” (91). To which Wozniak replied, “It’s incredible. It’s like it understands ‘greater than.’”

    Wozniak also notes that his former question about California Lakes now brings up lakefront properties while his question about prime numbers now displays information about prime ribs

  20. Re:No ads? Only until it's built up in market shar by 93+Escort+Wagon · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The relevant quote in the article is "At the moment, there are no plans..."..

    --
    #DeleteChrome
  21. Service provider != End User by DragonWriter · · Score: 3, Informative

    Hmmm, perhaps in your country EULA doesn't stand for End User License Agreement?

    No, but in my country the app developer isn't the "End User", and the terms and conditions of an API service agreement are not a "License Agreement".

    The only part that the API agreement and an EULA have in common is that they are both "agreements".

  22. Re:Just means they will make their money another w by ElectricTurtle · · Score: 3, Insightful

    They are giving you something, otherwise not only would nobody pay for it, they wouldn't use it even if it were free. I get so sick of all the something-for-nothing entitlement attitude that pervades society these days. Heaven forbid that companies actually make money to pay their costs, employees, and have some kind of, you know, profit for their shareholders. Google does this by selling data, boo fucking hoo. Meanwhile the people giving them data get in return free (huge) email, free phone service, free online storage, free office-oriented web apps, etc. etc.

    For glass they get all sorts of services delivered in real time in a non-obtrusive but always visible way. Some people will find this useful enough to BOTH pay for and give Google data. If people don't know what's really involved, whose fault is that really? Go into any court and argue 'but your honor, I didn't read the contract I signed' and see how far that goes. You'll be lucky if they don't laugh at you while dismissing your case. People need to be responsible for themselves, and stop expecting that "free" means they give nothing. It just means they don't have to tender money. Everything beyond that is up to contract terms. Ugh. I blame parents. My parents sure as hell didn't let me grow up thinking I was owed anything, or that I could just flop around the world hoping somebody else would be responsible for my interests/rights. Fucking grow up people. Being an adult is more than just age, you have to take control of your own life and go to the trouble of understanding the framework you live in.

    And all you wankers who defend the ignorant, knock it off. You're not helping them.

    --
    I support the Slashcott and will not be reading or commenting from 2/10/14 to 2/17/14. Beta is steaming pile of dog shit
  23. Re:Just means they will make their money another w by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    It's not about active ads. I'm sure they'll get revenue for passive advertising. You're wearing glass, you search for a restaurant, you get a list of local restaurants with directions... I can see pretty easy ways to embed ads into that whole process, and display USEFUL ads.

    Most folks don't have problems with advertising that helps them find what they're looking for.

  24. Re:Just means they will make their money another w by amRadioHed · · Score: 3, Insightful

    It's not a phone, it's a Bluetooth accessory. And the price hasn't been set at $1500. We have no idea what they will be selling this for when it gets released, but over $1000 seems incredibly unlikely.

    --
    We hope your rules and wisdom choke you / Now we are one in everlasting peace