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HTC Keyboard Ads Likely an Error, But Damage is Already Done (androidcentral.com)

Posted by msmash on from the bad-call dept.

An anonymous reader shares a report: Ads in the stock keyboard app on a flagship smartphone added quietly via an app update, which then asks you to pay to remove them. You'd be hard pressed to come up with a more comically villainous thing for a phone manufacturer, or app developer, to pull on its users. Yet that's what's been happening to some HTC phone owners over the past day. HTC 10 owners seem to be worst affected (we're not seeing it on the newer U11 for what it's worth), with the ad bar taking up a good chunk of screen real estate. There's understandable outrage among HTC owners whose phones have started coughing up ads every time they open the keyboard. The consensus, obviously, is that this is not an OK place for ads to be appearing. In a statement, HTC said it was an error, and a fix is underway.

142 comments

  1. Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    Shit like this is why Android is a neverending disaster

    1. Re:Stick with the iPhone by tripleevenfall · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Obvious flamebait, but the amount of advertising on the Android handset I owned got to be so overwhelming that it was one of the major reasons I am back to iPhone, after having given it up hoping for a more open and functional platform. Turned out, it wasn't.

    2. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Advertising, along with malware and the sheer volume of just plain crapware in the Play store will drive people away

    3. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Wait, there is LESS crapware on iTunes?

      Holy shit, now I gotta see what that android variant is like!

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    4. Re:Stick with the iPhone by LVSlushdat · · Score: 5, Informative

      THAT, friends, is why you root the shit out of Android and then use an app like AdAway, which uses the /etc/hosts file to block ads, which is why root is required. I tried other adblockers that didnt use the hosts file and none worked worth a damn.. Before I rooted my phone, it was endless ads in EVERYthing, and of course, this crap was eating up my data like mad, for which I pay for what I use (am on Ting.com). Once I rooted and installed AdAway, no more ads, and my data consumption went down signifcantly...

      --
      THANK YOU, Edward Snowden!! Americans owe you a debt of gratitude (whether they know it or not..)
    5. Re:Stick with the iPhone by dreamchaser · · Score: 1

      Buy a Pixel with Project Fi. I don't get ads. I get pure Android.

    6. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >open and functional platform

      Yeah, for advertisers.

    7. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Dishevel · · Score: 5, Informative

      Funny.

      I have no ads anywhere other than in browser on sites that have them. Maybe it is because I choose decent apps and pay for them. Instead of downloading every piece of shit freeware on the face of the planet and then complaining about it.

      --
      Why is it so hard to only have politicians for a few years, then have them go away?
    8. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      and the average Android user can do that?
      Really?

      That's why it is a crapfest but hey, we put up with it because it isn't Apple.

    9. Re:Stick with the iPhone by aaronb1138 · · Score: 4, Informative

      On Samsung phones, you can leverage Knox to get device administration without root. Adhell notably uses Knox and in addition to ad-blocking, it also allows freezing of preinstalled crapware.

      All of that said, obtrusive ads should be subject to similar laws as the "do no call" list. A $500 fine for each infraction of a "do not advertise" list would go a long way.

    10. Re: Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And the amount of advertising you get on an i device is equally bad...

      Default browser to a page nobody has a use for instead of a search engine? Prominent placement of apps, music, movies?

    11. Re:Stick with the iPhone by sexconker · · Score: 3, Interesting

      THAT, friends, is why you root the shit out of Android and then use an app like AdAway, which uses the /etc/hosts file to block ads, which is why root is required. I tried other adblockers that didnt use the hosts file and none worked worth a damn.. Before I rooted my phone, it was endless ads in EVERYthing, and of course, this crap was eating up my data like mad, for which I pay for what I use (am on Ting.com). Once I rooted and installed AdAway, no more ads, and my data consumption went down signifcantly...

      The problem with this is you lose access to a ton of apps that rely on "SafetyNet". Everything from Pokemon GO to AndroidPay to SnapChat uses SafetyNet and will refuse to run if it can detect that your system image has been modified or if it can detect that you have root access. (In SnapChat's case it only does this when you want to log in, so you can disable root, log in, then root again.) More and more apps are using SafetyNet, and it's fucking awful. It's a cat and mouse game to get root and still pass SafetyNet.

    12. Re:Stick with the iPhone by harperska · · Score: 1

      A survey of search terms is hardly a scientific study. There is a persistent rumor that Apple somehow cripples the OS on older models to make people want to upgrade. To me, seeing the search terms spike is not confirmation of the deed, but rather confirmation of the rumor.

      An alternative explanation is just that Apple has chosen to support their newer operating systems on older hardware that isn't necessarily powerful enough to run new features well. It's a real catch 22, where if they chose to only release new features on hardware that could run those features well, they'd be accused of forced obsolescence. On the other hand, by allowing new features to run on older hardware, the older hardware runs slower because it has a hard time keeping up with the new features. And Apple gets accused of forced obsolescence because the old hardware runs slow.

      To be sure, a real study needs to be done which compares benchmarks on older hardware between OS upgrades and over time. That would show for sure whether it is in fact just that newer OSes run slower on older hardware and that any apparent slowdown prior to a new hardware release is merely perceptual, or if a piece of hardware running the same OS really does slow down prior to a new hardware release.

    13. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Not sure why OP is modded down -- because it's fairly true.

      Bullshit, you know exactly why it was modded down, this being Slashdot - land of butthurt fags.

      1.) Android's security model is shit. It has to be shit, because they're making an OS for multiple manufacturers -- and that's the deal with the devil you accept on Android. Also, your mobile OS is made by a fucking marketing company -- the former CEO of which infamously once said "Google's job is to get right up to the creepy line and not cross it" (http://www.businessinsider.com/eric-schmidt-googles-policy-is-to-get-right-up-to-the-creepy-line-and-not-cross-it-2010-10?IR=T). Yeah, let's put that on your phones -- and TVs, and cars, and everything else. If Google could put ads on your keyboard, they would.
      2.) Apple seemingly intentionally slows their OSes down to force you to upgrade their shit hardware. e.g. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sci... (please forgive shitty right wing link; first hit on google and it does the job.)

      I'll gladly take a "seemingly" slowed down iPhone over a clearly slowed down phone thanks to all the crapware, malware, adware, etc. on an Android. At least the iPhone actually gets updates.

      What obvious choice, eh?

    14. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or, just, you know, don't use all those "free" ad supported apps out of the app store.

      I _used to_ play a nice ad supported solitare, until it racked up 114MB of data usage last month...

    15. Re:Stick with the iPhone by thegarbz · · Score: 2

      APK is that you?

    16. Re:Stick with the iPhone by AvitarX · · Score: 2

      Except the plan is really expensive if you don't actively manage data usage (or would be for me at least).

      --
      Wow, sent an e-mail as suggested when clicking on "use classic" banner, and got a fast response that addressed my msg
    17. Re:Stick with the iPhone by slew · · Score: 1

      Funny.
        I have no ads anywhere other than in browser on sites that have them. Maybe it is because I choose decent apps and pay for them. Instead of downloading every piece of shit freeware on the face of the planet and then complaining about it.

      If your phone vendor "accidentally" put ads into their stock keyboard app...
      I guess you need to amend that to choosing decent phone vendors...

    18. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Dishevel · · Score: 0

      he amount of advertising on the Android handset I owned got to be so overwhelming that it was one of the major reasons I am back to iPhone, after having given it up hoping for a more open and functional platform. Turned out, it wasn't.

      This is what the guy you were replying to said. His issue was not the brand new keyboard thing. He is already back at iPhone. His issue is that he is cheap and fucking lazy.

      --
      Why is it so hard to only have politicians for a few years, then have them go away?
    19. Re:Stick with the iPhone by nnull · · Score: 2

      Right, meanwhile, Apple won't even let you use a real adblocker because of their locked in Safari browser and you're forced to deal with hell from websites that abuse the crap out of it. Granted it's not as bad as a locked-in Android phone, but it's still quite annoying.

      I'll stick to my rooted phones where I can remove all the ads, remove the malware and actually have a real firewall on my phone. Also, I like being able to stream music from youtube with the screen off, where a locked Iphone or locked Android phone cannot do unless you root/jailbreak.

      If and when Google wants to go to the Iphone model with their recent Android lockin BS and spying, I'll just go back to a dumb phone. I still have my old Nokia phone that can keep a charge for over a week and works great.

    20. Re:Stick with the iPhone by nnull · · Score: 1

      So then I won't use their applications.

    21. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I seldom get ads on my Windows phone either (Win10, Nokia 635). And never on system-required apps. Of course, I have the settings properly managed, but it didn't require rooting the phone (other than whatever Insider did to install 10 when the carrier abandoned the phone after 8.1 Cyan). Of course, with a market share below 1/2% I'm sure the advertisers, like the app developers, have decided that Windows phone users aren't worth the effort.

    22. Re:Stick with the iPhone by sexconker · · Score: 1

      You'll be using fewer and fewer applications then as more and more applications require a SafetyNet check.

      Everything from online banking apps to games require it. Banking apps make no sense when you can get the full functionality (and often more than the app provides) from a web browser on your phone or a PC with absolutely no "security" checks. Games at least make sense, even if I don't like it. They want to prevent cheating and prevent ad blocking.

      SnapChat required it in order to prevent people from saving snaps, but they've backed off from the whole ephemeral thing in the last couple of years. SO I have no clue why they've still got the initial SafetyNet check.

    23. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or browse with JavaScript off. VOILA! No ads & page still reads/shows fine.

      Who really cares if an iFrame is misaligned on the screen or if, (heaven forbid), a 'premiere user experience' is unable to dominate my screen...
      I'm happier for it! JavaScript can be turned back on for certain pages if need be- then off again. Jeesh.
      You and your 'decent apps'

    24. Re:Stick with the iPhone by tripleevenfall · · Score: 1

      So I have to buy an Android handset, then I have to root it, and then I have to run adblockers in perpetuity?

      Or I could just buy an iPhone and I'm done.

    25. Re:Stick with the iPhone by tripleevenfall · · Score: 1

      I'm not cheap. I'll pay more money for quality software.

      Which is why I'm using iOS now.

    26. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      If your phone really isn't filled with pirated apps and porn why don't you just use an iPhone like a grownup?

    27. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Dishevel · · Score: 2

      Because I am capable of making my own decision of what I do and do not want on my phone. I do not need a dead fag with a turtle neck to tell me what I want in a phone.

      --
      Why is it so hard to only have politicians for a few years, then have them go away?
    28. Re:Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "I tried other adblockers that didnt use the hosts file and none worked worth a damn"

      Too stupid to hardblock it in your router, eh?

      HOSTs requires you to install on every machine. Router-based blocks only need ONE machine - the router itself.

      And to boot, with a router-based block, you don't have to worry about possibly infecting/backdooring your phone while trying to root it.

      Smart people avoid a HOSTs-based solution.

    29. Re:Stick with the iPhone by BarbaraHudson · · Score: 1

      It's the crappy apps you're installing, not Android itself. When you want something for free, did you really believe that it would be without cost?

      --
      "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
    30. Re: Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You dumbass, we're talking about MOBILE phones, where the main use case is mobile internet, not wifi to a hardline internet connection. When you figure out how to block that with a router we'll listen.

    31. Re:Stick with the iPhone by tepples · · Score: 1

      Everything from online banking apps to games require it.

      Some Slashdot users are so adamant about their freedom that they'll stick to those games that are on F-Droid and even move their accounts from a bank whose app uses SafetyNet to a credit union whose app does not.

    32. Re: Stick with the iPhone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "which uses the /etc/hosts file"

      So APK was right after all?

    33. Re:Stick with the iPhone by strikethree · · Score: 1

      The problem with this is you lose access to a ton of apps that rely on "SafetyNet".

      I was going to moderate, as what you say is interesting; however, I should point out that you can do without those apps or you can ensure your phone is just a phone and use those apps on a small tablet or something where the constant barrage of advertisements does not directly affect your ability to communicate.

      --
      "Someone needs to talk to the tree of liberty about its ghoulish drinking problem." by ohnocitizen
    34. Re:Stick with the iPhone by harperska · · Score: 1

      Yes, benchmarks should be done on the same hardware+iOS over time. People are asserting that degradation over time, especially close to new hardware releases, is maliciously built in by Apple. But I have yet to see hard evidence that any such degradation even happens in the first place.

  2. I can think of one thing quite easily. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    You'd be hard pressed to come up with a more comically villainous thing for a phone manufacturer, or app developer, to pull on its users.

    Systemd.

  3. I want my $40 back by xxxJonBoyxxx · · Score: 3, Insightful

    ...said every HTC phone owner, ever.

    1. Re:I want my $40 back by gustygolf · · Score: 1

      Where did you find it so cheap? The HTC 10 costs 550 EUR here.

      --
      "Slow Down Cowboy! It's been 58 minutes since you last successfully posted a comment" -- slashdot, driving users away.
    2. Re:I want my $40 back by dunkelfalke · · Score: 1

      I used to love HTC phones back in the day, starting with the good old Wallaby, but HD2 was the last one I've bought.

      --
      "It's such a fine line between stupid and clever" -- David St. Hubbins, Spinal Tap
    3. Re:I want my $40 back by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      HTC Apache and HTC Incredible were amazing and ahead of their times. Haven't had one since then, been on Sony.

      Never had a problem with ads on Android and I have zero tolerance for ads... what gives? Do people just install any malware from the app store?

    4. Re:I want my $40 back by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This was an update to the built in manufacturer keyboard. Not some third party app.

  4. Summary by Dan+East · · Score: 3, Insightful

    It's way too early in the morning for me to exert this much brainpower trying to decipher such a poorly worded summary.

    --
    Better known as 318230.
    1. Re:Summary by gnick · · Score: 4, Funny

      It's way too early in the morning for me to exert this much brainpower trying to decipher such a poorly worded summary.

      The summary. Posted to slashdot's front page. Added quietly by an admin. Which then asks for your time to parse it. You'd be hard pressed to come up with a more comically villainous thing for a news site, or an admin, to pull on its users.

      --
      He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
    2. Re:Summary by JoshuaZ · · Score: 5, Funny

      If you imagine it is being read by William Shatner it makes complete sense.

    3. Re:Summary by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 1

      Someone tried to monetize every key click with intrusive ads. A brilliant idea poorly executed. Better luck next time.*

      * Note: I'm only half-way through my skinny vanilla latte for this morning. Someone else might have a better interpretation.

    4. Re:Summary by necro81 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Agreed. The first sentence is not actually a sentence by the usual rules (such as they are) that govern English. Where is the verb in that sentence? The second sentence is not much better - here the verb is constructed in the passive voice. The third sentence is some sort of dependent clause that has no business trying to stand on its own as a sentence.

      If all of this is so dastardly and important, don't make us work so damn hard to figure it out!

    5. Re:Summary by Brett+Buck · · Score: 1

      Agreed. I had to read the first few "sentences" multiple times before I got the gist of it.

        This is one of the most poorly written summaries I have seen here, and that's setting the bar pretty low. I am not much for grammar flames, but the point of communications is to communicate, and this isn't accomplishing the goal.

    6. Re:Summary by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      > The first sentence is not actually a sentence by the usual rules (such as they are) that govern English

      It's one of those beasts where the noun phrase is a complete thought. Sometimes it's sloppy thinking, but sometimes it's not.

    7. Re:Summary by ColdWetDog · · Score: 1

      Damn. That really does work.

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    8. Re:Summary by Geoffrey.landis · · Score: 1

      It's way too early in the morning for me to exert this much brainpower trying to decipher such a poorly worded summary.

      Yes, verbs would have been nice. Usually, they are considered "required" in an English sentence.

      --
      http://www.geoffreylandis.com
    9. Re:Summary by wbr1 · · Score: 1

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

      --
      Silence is a state of mime.
    10. Re:Summary by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      "Mr. Scott, I want these phones off my ship and mechanical keyboards installed by 19:00"

    11. Re:Summary by arth1 · · Score: 1

      Yes, verbs would have been nice. Usually, they are considered "required" in an English sentence.

      Yeah, right.

    12. Re:Summary by TheRaven64 · · Score: 1

      Yes, verbs would have been nice. Usually, they are considered "required" in an English sentence.

      Nonsense.

      --
      I am TheRaven on Soylent News
    13. Re:Summary by Geoffrey.landis · · Score: 1

      Yes, verbs would have been nice. Usually, they are considered "required" in an English sentence.

      Nonsense.

      Usually. Not always.

      --
      http://www.geoffreylandis.com
    14. Re:Summary by ItsJustAPseudonym · · Score: 1

      Especially this:
      "[W]e're...not...seeing it...on the newer U11...for...what it's worth."

      Fricking brilliant.

    15. Re:Summary by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The verb in the first sentence is 'in'

    16. Re:Summary by TheRaven64 · · Score: 1

      Yes, verbs would have been nice. Usually, they are considered "required" in an English sentence.

      Nonsense.

      Usually. Not always.

      Bravo!

      --
      I am TheRaven on Soylent News
  5. Peel Smart Remote by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Some Samsung phones purchased from Verizon (and perhaps other phones) come with Peel Smart Remote installed. Updates to the app involve creating unwanted notifications on the lock screen and full screen ads when the phone is unlocked. This even happens if I've never actually opened Peel Smart Remote. The app seems like it's turned into malware, but there's no easy want to get rid of it. The customer service from Peel has been truly awful, too.

    1. Re:Peel Smart Remote by iampiti · · Score: 1

      Yeah, I didn't use it (save a couple of times to check it could actually control my tv) but it did no harm ...until a recent update started creating notifications far too often to get itself noticed. I tried to find an option to disable them to no avail so I just rolled it back to the version it came with the phone and I've been happy ever since.

  6. An error? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    It's not like you can just 'accidentally' code the framework which would support the ads to be played in the first place.

    1. Re:An error? by Dracos · · Score: 1

      Exactly. This decision was made high up and rammed through with no user testing.

    2. Re:An error? by stealth_finger · · Score: 1

      Nah but what you can do is farm out your keyboard to some third party (probably involving paying them a whole bunch of money) then leave it to that company to have a 'server hiccup' that displays ads to your customers. But I suppose that's what you get for farming out your fundamentals to third parties.

      --
      Wanna buy a shirt?
      https://www.redbubble.com/people/stealthfinger/shop?asc=u
    3. Re:An error? by TheRaven64 · · Score: 1

      I can think of two ways. Way one: you contract out the development to a company that has a paid version and an ad-supported version. They accidentally give you the ad-supported apk to push to your customers instead of the paid one. Way two: you have an internal project to see if you can push down the up-front cost of a phone by pushing ads in various places (as the Kindle Fire does on the lock screen) and using that to subsidise the cost. You have the same people working on it as the normal system and one of them accidentally pushes to the wrong repo.

      --
      I am TheRaven on Soylent News
  7. Error my ass! by evanh · · Score: 2, Insightful

    "HTC said it was an error, and a fix is underway" - With bullshit lines like that spewing forth every other day, is it any wonder people are fed up with the status quo?

    1. Re:Error my ass! by rickb928 · · Score: 1, Informative

      What's the BS? That it was a mistake? Plainly it was, despite the knee-jerk responses of the butthurt hordes. The BS is that it was let out without a decent check by HTC - the app is apparently a TouchPal app, which is where the mistake probably occurred. Blame HTC for not testing prior to release, or TouchPal(?) for similarly not debranding properly.

      And Android users, those free apps aren't 'free'. Ads are the price you pay. Even paid apps monetize further with ads, I know, so choose between the truly minimal greed of independent devs hoping to score big, or the corporations able to nail you. Choose wisely.

      --
      deleting the extra space after periods so i can stay relevant, yeah.
    2. Re:Error my ass! by david_thornley · · Score: 4, Insightful

      It seems more likely to me that HTC made a mistake in underestimating the pushback than in releasing the software.

      I am aware of where Android app revenue comes from. I also believe that basic functionality should not require ads without a prior agreement, and that ads should appear only in the apps that place them. The Android apps I use tend not to push ads on me, since I either pay for them or are conveniences for services I do pay for (like the Kindle app).

      --
      "When you have eliminated the unacceptable, whatever is left, however improbable, must be the truthiness" - Holmes
    3. Re:Error my ass! by LVSlushdat · · Score: 1

      Easy fix: root and AdAway... easypeasy.. No more ads..

      --
      THANK YOU, Edward Snowden!! Americans owe you a debt of gratitude (whether they know it or not..)
    4. Re:Error my ass! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And Android users, those free apps aren't 'free'. Ads are the price you pay. Even paid apps monetize further with ads, I know, so choose between the truly minimal greed of independent devs hoping to score big, or the corporations able to nail you. Choose wisely.

      Free apps may not be free, but the stock keyboard app is an integral part of using the phone. Anything integral to the use of the phone should be part of the price paid for the phone, not a surprise cost added some time after purchase.

      Further, adding these ad-supported features after someone's purchased the device is a deceptive practice. While adding purchase options to gain additional value would be fine, adding a purchase option to restore original functionality (i.e. the ad-free basic keyboard) isn't. The FTC could come down hard on them, at least if this so-called error isn't reversed. HTC has the right to add optional features to the phone (such as an enhanced keyboard) and support these new features with ads, but they can't just replace the existing stock app for an ad-supported version without a major uproar.

      No one (well mostly no one) is against ad-supported free apps. They're against deceptive bait-and-switch practices.

    5. Re: Error my ass! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What's that thing they say about forgiveness vs permission?

      You have to test the water and keep pushing until people accept your agenda. All things are cultural things but you *can* change culture. E.g. Not all cultures believe eating cats or dogs is wrong.

      You only believe what you believe because of social conditioning and your environment. Learn to love your new advertising riddled existence.

    6. Re:Error my ass! by DickBreath · · Score: 1

      > > "HTC said it was an error, and a fix is underway"

      > With bullshit lines like that spewing forth every other day, is it any wonder people are fed up with the status quo?

      What HTC really meant was: . . . a fix is underway . . . but in the meantime, you can pay us to get rid of the ads.

      --

      I'll see your senator, and I'll raise you two judges.
    7. Re:Error my ass! by Greyfox · · Score: 1

      Sure it was an error. They implemented ads in their keyboard and they had a switch to turn it on. So exactly what was the error? Switching it on at that point in time? Not realizing that their users would give two shits? Being out-innovated at every turn by Samsung? You think anyone involved in the decision process of "Hey let's put ads in the keyboard!" got fired? I guess their error was that they decided to be a bunch of underhanded twats and then lying about it when they got called out. Fortunately I won't be making the error of ever buying their hardware in the future, so I suppose it's an error in my favor.

      --

      I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?

    8. Re:Error my ass! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Mistake" and "Accident" are not the same thing.

    9. Re:Error my ass! by samwichse · · Score: 1

      TouchPal keyboard is freeware in the Play Store, but throws ads up on your phone unless you pay within the app. There are also versions there like "Touchpal for HTC" which are sponsored by HTC... apparently the TouchPal people updated the HTC version on the Play Store to display ads and the phones dutifully downloaded and installed the update.

      My phone (Axon 7) came with TouchPal stock, but I disabled it and intalled gboard because TouchPal seems none too accurate. Just checked and it still doesn't show ads, but it's a "different" app than TouchPal for HTC.

      I find it likely this was a error at least for HTC. But for their subcontractor, probably just an attempt to get away with something that went over like a lead balloon.

      Nice try, guys.

    10. Re:Error my ass! by samwichse · · Score: 1

      Oops, meant to say "free," not "freeware." If it's any kind of ware, it's adware.

  8. "It was an error" by NoZart · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Sure. Implementing all the code to display ads within the keyboard app just happened because the cat ran over the keyboard.
    Oh, you mean it was an error that this crap got rolled out? Thanks for informing me about how the future looks like for HTC customers, then.

    I used to love HTC products, now i avoid them.

    1. Re:"It was an error" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Implementing all the code to display ads within the keyboard app just happened because the cat ran over the keyboard.

      Apaprently it's not HTC's app, it's a third-party keyboard which has ads but can get a paid upgrade to ad-free. HTC was supposed to have bundled a paid-up version with each handset, and claim a server-end error failed to recognise that the handsets were paid-up so it served them ads.

      Still dubious, but a more believable excuse than "we accidentally wrote a bunch of fully functional code and rolled it out without noticing".

    2. Re:"It was an error" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      If you read the article (I know, I know) it turns out that HTC outsourced their keyboard to a third party company. That third party company also sells the keyboard software directly on the Google Play store, and has a trial version that's ad supported. Apparently what happened is that somehow the special HTC-only version was accidentally flagged as the trial version.

      So that's why the ad support was there (it was always there, because it was for the Google Play version), and that's how the error happened (they accidentally flagged the special HTC version as a trial).

      Which is why you shouldn't outsource critical system software to another company that doesn't have any reason to particularly care about your customers.

      (And as an added bonus, presumably HTC doesn't get any of the money made from the ads "accidentally" shown by their partner.)

    3. Re:"It was an error" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Clearly some overworked dev meant to use add() rather than ad() in the calculator section of the keyboard. Simple mistake. Happens all the time.

    4. Re:"It was an error" by ColdWetDog · · Score: 1

      There is something more than a little creepy about a keyboard app talking to a server 'to check things'.

      It just gives me the willies. Brave New World, indeed.

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    5. Re:"It was an error" by LVSlushdat · · Score: 1

      hehe Guess you don't know about Microsoft's latest turd_in_the_punchbowl, called Windows 10 ... or as I call it, Windows NSA Edition....

      --
      THANK YOU, Edward Snowden!! Americans owe you a debt of gratitude (whether they know it or not..)
    6. Re:"It was an error" by rjstanford · · Score: 1

      Then its HTC's problem. Whether or not their keyboard was developed in-house is exactly the kind of BS that their customers shouldn't have to deal with, in exchange for them paying HTC lots of money. That's how these things traditionally work in business.

      --
      You're special forces then? That's great! I just love your olympics!
  9. Whatya gonna do? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    The Android is so much cheaper - by a factor of 1/7th the cost or so.

    Or you have to sign up for those ridiculous contracts from carriers for a subsidized iPhone and still pay $200 up front.

    I paid $119 for a Samsung J1 ACE - it has a removable battery - and it's pretty good.

    Although, too many android app developers do not understand that apps do not always need blanket access to every aspect of a phone (I blame laziness and stupidity: not malice). I will not install an app - "free" or not - that requires access to things that it has no business having access to - like why does a guitar tuning app or a weather app need access to my contacts or location information? My iPad allows me to turn-off location and I can still use the weather.com app by just putting my zip code in - a weather app does NOT need GPS locations!!

    1. Re:Whatya gonna do? by rickb928 · · Score: 1

      Gee, sounds like Windows devs requiring admin privilege to install/maintain apps when they could handle privileges correctly, though that would mean knowing more than they do...

      --
      deleting the extra space after periods so i can stay relevant, yeah.
    2. Re:Whatya gonna do? by goombah99 · · Score: 1

      I take it your time has no value if you think hardware is the only cost of a phone.

      --
      Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
    3. Re:Whatya gonna do? by RotateLeftByte · · Score: 2

      It seems to be only in the USA that you have those stupid contracts.
      I on a SIM only deal and pay $15/month. The contract is a rolling one month, not two years and I can use any phone I want. I buy my phones from Pawn Brokers. They are nearly always unlocked but the carrier has to unlock it when asked.

      I don't know anyone who still uses a 2yr carrier contract.

      --
      I'd rather be riding my '63 Triumph T120.
    4. Re:Whatya gonna do? by TheRaven64 · · Score: 2

      The difference is a lot lower at the higher end. My partner has just replaced her ageing Nokia 1020 (really nice phone and the hardware is still pretty solid, but Windows Mobile 8.1 doesn't get security updates and has almost no third-party apps) with a second-hand Samsung. A similar iPhone is only 20-30% more expensive, but the killer is the lack of third-party OS support. When an iPhone stops getting security updates, it's basically dead. When a moderately popular Android device stops getting security updates, you can install LineageOS on it and it remains useable (my first-gen Moto G is older than her Nokia and a lot slower, but it's still getting fortnightly updates from LineageOS and I expect to keep using it until it physically dies).

      --
      I am TheRaven on Soylent News
  10. An error by necro81 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    HTC said it was an error, and a fix is underway

    Ads don't magically appear by dint of the universe being against us (although, the universe is against us). In order for those ads to appear, some poor developer had to be given the task of adding that feature. Then some other poor fools had to test it and qualify it across multiple hardware platforms. Then it had to get bundled into the software update, and then pushed out to users.

    My point is, there were many, many very intentional acts required for this to occur, and almost none of which could conceivably have been an accident or "error". This ass-hattery must be roundly called out and ridiculed. Probably there isn't any legal action indicated, but it might be nice for someone to try.

    1. Re:An error by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      It was intentional, the error was they weren't expecting an outrage...

    2. Re:An error by c · · Score: 1

      In order for those ads to appear, some poor developer had to be given the task of adding that feature.

      I suspect that HTC is just rebranding a third-party keyboard app which has an ad-supported version on some app store (possibly even the Play store) and uses the same code base across versions. I don't think the stock Android keyboard is that horrible, but I'm sure HTC has their reasons for not using it. So the dev probably just left the flag on and never noticed the glitch.

      Then some other poor fools had to test it and qualify it across multiple hardware platforms. Then it had to get bundled into the software update, and then pushed out to users.

      Yeah, HTC definitely owns that fuckup.

      --
      Log in or piss off.
    3. Re:An error by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      There was a better summary of things over on Ars Technica. Basically HTC seems to be using a third party keyboard as the default. HTC device owners should be getting the "paid" version without ads, but somehow or another (I'll refrain from speculating on intent) the "ad supported" mode was triggered.

    4. Re:An error by orlanz · · Score: 1

      That's so much worse! That's shows how crap their release process is. Even internal dev testing of the release should have caught that. Can you imagine the number of bugs that could be released from such a process. It would be as bad as a zero day exploit.

      My guess is that it was intentional. Some PHB thought up the idea of an additional revenue stream at the last minute and the yesmen couldn't get giddy enough on it. Then they bypassed any sane QA/UAT testing to meet the release date. The mistake was that no one with decision making power realized the level of backlash it could cause.

      As the GP, I also gave up on HTC a long time ago. Most of the Android vendors are like this thou :/ They think commitment means 6-12 months. Hopefully there is a massive cost from complaints, returns, and a clear sales drop. The others need a lesson on customer satisfaction.

    5. Re:An error by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What software company do you work at that tests their software before releasing it? I know lots of people who talk about it, but in practice I've never seen it done.

    6. Re:An error by pop+ebp · · Score: 4, Informative

      I believe it was an error. Although HTC does deserve part of the blame.
      You see, the "stock keyboard" was actually a third-party app, which is ad-supported by default.
      The HTC version is supposed to be a special ad-free version, but somehow during the latest update the app developers pushed the ad-supported version to HTC devices as well.

      If anything, this demonstrates the dangers of bundling apps that you don't directly control.
      And who's to say the ad-free version doesn't still track the user or collect personal information? If it wants it could collect all your passwords too!
      It was really poor judgement on HTC's part to use such an app for a sensitive component like the stock keyboard.

    7. Re:An error by fermion · · Score: 1
      It was an error in judgement on the part of HTC, not a technical error.

      Today only Apple and Samsung and Google and MS trailing far behind, off computer consumer sales. This means that other firms have to be creative in monetizing the product.

      This is no different from years back when only Apple and MS made money off PC sales. Most people who bought a MS loaded PC never really knew what they were going to get. OEM were trying to meet a price point, so you might have a fast CPU with a FSB so slow that the CPU spent most of the time idle. More than likely your computer would be so full of what we now call adware that unless you paid someone to clean it the computer was largely unusable.

      You can't blame a company who loses US$100 million a quarter for trying everything it can to stay afloat. You can only blame them for using Android.

      --
      "She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
    8. Re:An error by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You are right of course, but wrong on the conclusion. While there is a lot of intentional acts required to get code into an app, the resulting code can lie dormant for an entire class of users and be enabled for another. It doesn't take much more than a typo to negate such efforts and we see these feature creeps (both good and bad) quite often precisely because maintaining one code base is cheaper than maintaining multiple for each user class.

      Is there someone out there who intentionally wanted ads displayed to some users of this keyboard? Yes
      Does it make sense for HTC who control the distribution of the OS specifically to lump this function into the keyboard of all places in order to screw the users of their phone? Well that doesn't pass the pub test.

    9. Re:An error by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Default keyboard is a third party app. That third party maintains a paid (ad-free) version and an ad-supported version. The ad-supported version was pushed in the update. You can argue all you like about how that came to be, but nobody went out of their way to develop the ad-based version just for this HTC release.

      Also it's quite likely that whatever mechanism allowed users to pay to get rid of the ads would provide payment to the third party, not HTC.

    10. Re:An error by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Even if it *was* an error (as hard as it is to believe, other than an error in judgement), correcting it will take months. Keyboard app must be fixed (a week or 2 at most if management is actually interested), tested (a few more weeks), rolled out to manufacturing where it can be inserted in new production (a few more weeks) and telecom carriers for doing over-the-air (a month to a year to never, depending on the carrier). Good luck!

    11. Re:An error by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why the hell do you need an app for a keyboard? Do I need to download a program from Microsoft in addition to the OS in order to be able to type on my PC? NO

    12. Re:An error by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm guessing that the app probably detects the HTC hardware in some method and in this case the detection is failing to detect the HTC 10 properly and thus not enabling the paid version. This is just speculation but the U11 apparently received the same update but the ads didn't appear.

      TouchPal - the keyboard app maker does provide an ad supported version and a paid version. HTC holds some blame for approving the update without proper QA, assuming they did approve the update and it wasn't that the developer accidentally published before approval from HTC QA.

    13. Re:An error by LoneTech · · Score: 1

      The reason you don't need to download a program to type on your PC is simply that it is bundled with the OS. Which is exactly the case with this keyboard app. The difference is that HTC apparently contracted some third party keyboard rather than retheming the AOSP default keyboard, when they decided they wanted to put their own look on it. This choice was probably to save costs as they wouldn't need to update the app themselves. They use a nonstandard one because people judge the value of the phone based on the default keyboard, among other things, rather than go looking for a keyboard they like and can install on whatever phone they get. SNAFU all around. When MS bundle a third party app in this manner, it's usually less critical (such as that horrendous phone game Windows 10 keeps advertising) or they are more thorough in pretending they made it themselves (DoubleSpace, xcopy, etc).

  11. Error? Bullshit. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You don't just accidentally insert ads into an app. It's not terribly difficult to do, but it's a very deliberate action that takes multiple steps in multiple source files. That they had a 'pay to remove' link says that it couldn't possibly have been done by accident.

    While I could believe this to be a rogue action by a single HTC developer, that's not what they're claiming. They're saying it's an error. The only error I see is in their judgment, thinking this sort of thing is acceptable.

  12. That's just by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    so gay

  13. HTC must be Chinese for "Eat Shit!" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ads in the keyboard app?!?! Seriously?!?!

    "Eat Shit!" might be too nice.

  14. With all the problems of the ROM community by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This is one thing that we don't have to worry about.

  15. Android sucks so fucking bad! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Android is the worst thing since Windows; it is the new Windows. How do people use that garbage?

    1. Re:Android sucks so fucking bad! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Quite simple; I wouldnt use it if I couldnt install ROMs like OmniROM or LOS. If Android was "closed"; I'd ditch the platform for iPhone (yuk!) or go back to flip phones.

    2. Re:Android sucks so fucking bad! by LVSlushdat · · Score: 1

      Android is only worth a shit if its rooted and has something like AdAway installed, which uses the /etc/hosts file to actually BLOCK the ad servers.

      --
      THANK YOU, Edward Snowden!! Americans owe you a debt of gratitude (whether they know it or not..)
  16. "In error" by Lord+Lode · · Score: 5, Funny

    Oops, my finger slipped and accidentally all this code to display ads in a rectangular bounding box and get ads from ad servers and a working payment system that allows removing them!

    1. Re:"In error" by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Damn, those RADs really get out of hand with what they dump automatically into your apps...

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    2. Re:"In error" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Exactly this. This was planned and put in there. Not by any accident at all.

      You have to wonder what other treasures HTC have stuck into unremovable apps on their phones. Next up, a homeland/russian/chinese/korean/popular wannabe tracking module, configured just for your country for your telecoms provider or national security vendor or choice!

    3. Re:"In error" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yea, even in a world where Link can walk past rocks if you tilt the cartridge, I have a hard time believing their coders accidentally a whole advertising infrastructure.

    4. Re:"In error" by burtosis · · Score: 1

      Agreed, as in a greed. However it "could" be an accident as in it was all coded up and not meant to actually be implemented yet. Then it could be as simple as uncommenting a single line or a single number.

    5. Re:"In error" by ItsJustAPseudonym · · Score: 1

      And don't make me use the other nine fingers, if you know what's good for you!

  17. Consumers are idiots by whoever57 · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Any company that pulls this type of crap should quickly dive into bankruptcy as it loses customers*

    The reality is that most customers won't care.

    * Note: this was deliberate. As others have pointed out, you don't accidentally put ads into an app. Also, why wasn't it pulled immediately? This was a deliberate attempt to test the reaction to ads in the keyboard app.

    --
    The real "Libtards" are the Libertarians!
    1. Re:Consumers are idiots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I am soon to be in the market for a new phone and HTC is now off my list of options, and very probably permanently on my $hitlist.

      to be on my$list means i will avoid their products wherever reasonably possible. It's exceptionally hard to get off my $list, as bad behavior should not be 'oopsies''d away.

    2. Re:Consumers are idiots by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      While I have no doubt the ad code is deliberate in the adverts, I highly doubt it was deliberately targeted at HTC phone owners. Why the hell would you use the keyboard app to display apps when you control the full code to the entire OS?

      More likely this was to enable free ad supported versions of HTC's keyboard to be used on other phones (TouchPal keyboard is quite a popular app on the Play Store) and accidentally pushed to HTC phone users as well.

      It makes no sense to add these "features" into an easily replaceable part of the customer's OS if your goal is to screw the customer.

    3. Re:Consumers are idiots by aergern · · Score: 1

      It was a mistake. Get over it. It's easy to fix and really didn't do anything but cause folks like you to grab your pitchforks and torches. I'll bet you don't even own an HTC. sheesh.

      --
      Tell me what you believe...I'll tell you what you should see.
    4. Re:Consumers are idiots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >This was a deliberate attempt to test the reaction to ads in the keyboard app.

      To test the reaction? No, the reactions are known since ads were invented. The reaction is always negative, no one 'likes' ads.
      Here let me reword your statement for HTC's real intent:

      This was a deliberate attempt to test customers' willingness to part with their money when suddenly inconvenienced.
      FTFY

  18. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 2

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  19. You know what they say... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Apps that app other apps get apped!

    Apps!

  20. Annoying yes, suprinsing?, sadly, no by iampiti · · Score: 1

    The subject says most of what I want to say. Consumer level computing is reaching a very sad state of affairs. It's infested with advertising, user spying, walled gardens, artificial limitations and in general, user-hostile "features".
    The iPhone popularized the walled garden concept where the manufacturer decides what you can and can't do with your device by limiting what software you're allowed to run. Then Google designed Android to be a vehicle for pushing their services and spying the masses. Then Microsoft got the worst of both and pushed it into Windows 10. To top it all off, software manufacturers are pushing hard for a rent model where you have to pay periodically if you want to keep using the software.
    All I really want is the classic model where I pay some money and can do whatever I want with my hardware and software. Right now, the only way to escape is to run Linux

  21. Ads are not ever OK by crafoo · · Score: 1

    Ads are not OK anywhere. Some places are worse than others, but they are never OK. Advertisements chip away at a civil society. They are a destructive force. Our goal should be to eliminate them from the world.

  22. HTC, I will pay you to unlock my bootloader... by emil · · Score: 1

    ...but you will never get a dime from me to remove ads.

    I decided to stop buying HTC when they completely refused to unlock the device. I likewise absolutely refuse to run their (poor quality) stock, and we all see the consequences of their OTAs/updates.

    Sunshine appears to do quite the business with HTC.

    1. Re:HTC, I will pay you to unlock my bootloader... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I believe that is only a problem with Verizon HTC phones, Sunshine works around it. I've never needed anything more than the free tool from the developer site for any non-Verizon HTC phone.

      You can unlock via https://www.htcdev.com/bootloader/

      They even keep warranty support which several companies drop if you unlock.

  23. "Damage is already done" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    sort of like whenever a single thing went wrong on Windows, macOS, iPhone, Blackberry etc. then the game was over, the gig was up, abandon ship? It will be patched, and you will still have your flagship smartphone.

  24. this isnt something new from HTC by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    they did EXACTLY the same thing with the blinkfeed -> news republic sham...

  25. HTC has treated their users wrong in the past by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I had an HTC phone with at&t. I had lots of notes. A forced update on my phone deleted the notes and replaced the notes app with Ever Note. You had to pay Ever Note for the privilege of having notes.

    I could not get in touch with at&t to complain so I just dropped at&t and HTC. I went to Verizon and iPhone. And I have not looked back.

    I thought switching from iPhone to an Android phone like HTC would be great due to the so-called freedom I hear about Android. I then learned it was just hype. HTC email was always a strange mess. So, I regretted switching to HTC One. Anyways, I am back on iPhone.

    1. Re:HTC has treated their users wrong in the past by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      One more thing...

      I remember HTC forced an update that put ads on my HTC One home/lock screen. I am sure these ads ate up my power and data plan.

  26. I may slit my wrists. by aergern · · Score: 1

    OMG! The sky is falling! HTC is f***ed! We can never trust them again to fix a minor mistake! It destroys this perfectly awesome phone. I'm crushed.

    --
    Tell me what you believe...I'll tell you what you should see.
  27. Oddly for me Kinda sucks... by cant_get_a_good_nick · · Score: 1

    My wife is Taiwanese... so Taiwan econ stuff actually somewhat resonates with me. HTC is going down the tubes., Now, you have a vicious cycle... losing money, so lets do desperate stuff, that alienates more people, so we get more desperate...

    Bye Bye htc, sadly.

  28. Huawei also by MS · · Score: 1

    Huawei Y3 also had the default keyboard app showing ads after a few weeks of usage. I had to uninstall the keyboard app to get rid of this nuisance.

  29. (we're not seeing it on the newer U11) FAKE NEWS by superjeer · · Score: 1

    Just a note, I have the U11 and started seeing the ads. At first I thought it was the Verizon Message+ app, so I switched the the default HTC one and they still showed up. I couldn't believe they'd make their default keyboard Ad-Ware. The first story I read about this was that the 3rd party vendor made the mistake (They have an adware version of this keyboard and accidentally turned on the ads when they pushed out the update for HTC). It's a pretty nice keyboard, but I had the full Swype version to fall back on, and did. I don't think I'll go back to the HTC one, there's no reason. But, I have to say, this U11 is a nice phone.

  30. Come the revolution by Pig+Hogger · · Score: 1

    the first against the wall will be the Sir^h^h^h HTC martketing department.

  31. No, but THIS was (where u EAT UR WORDS) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    See subject: Tell us - How'd EATING YOUR WORDS taste https://yro.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10630231&cid=54447693/

    * LMAO...

    APK

    P.S.=> You've seen nothing you FAKE NAME for your FAKE LIFE registered 'luser' (was fun dusting you on me getting +5 uprated posts in the link above (& talking behind my back now? I catch them & dust you in THAT bs too)... apk

    1. Re: No, but THIS was (where u EAT UR WORDS) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Who are you talking to, pops? Take your meds.

  32. TouchPal =/= HTC by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'm smelling a lot of hate directed at HTC 'round here, this is quite unfortunate as this has very little to do with HTC. The persons responsible for this indiscretion is TouchPal, the third party company responsible developing HTC's default keyboard. I will go on record saying that HTC is definitely at fault for hiring such a shoddy company to work on their keyboards (I mean come on! TouchPal is partnered with Huawei! Huawei people! And like a dozen others I've never even heard of). And as for the "error" excuse, did someone accidentally create and implement a function to fetch ads from a server, display them and create a pay system to remove them? I think not. At any rate I changed my default keyboard the day I got the phone, as should you.

    In conclusion; Fuck TouchPal.

  33. Ooops, I accidentally coded... by Bartles · · Score: 1

    ...a framework for transmitting and displaying ads above the HTC keyboard. My finger must have slipped. Repeatedly. In just the right way. Thousands of times. And then I accidentally compiled and tested the code.

  34. Don't visit OP web site by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    OP web site AndroidCentral.com is using a fingerprinting hack to try and identify your PC - even if you have Do Not Track specified. This is unethical to do to US visitors and illegal to do to EU visitors.

  35. vezhlys by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yes, I've seen an ad above the HTC10 keyboard once but I actually thought it was a messaging application which introduced it. It was enough to close it once (yes, it had close button) and I hadn't seen it anymore since then. Didn't see any requirement to pay to remove it. So yes, it was strange to see the ad but it wasn't as a big deal as article describes, it disappeared immediately.

  36. You, FAKE NAME for a FAKE LIFE by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    See subject "thegarbz" under that FAKE NAME for a FAKE LIFE you used (now you're trying UNIDENTIFIABLE anonymous posts) so take your own advice & those "meds" you project YOU need to take fool!

    * Seeing you attempt to "downmod hide" where I posted this before https://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10873827&cid=54827537/ proves my point & it's priceless!

    APK

    P.S.=> It also was a pleasure making you EAT YOUR WORDS chump https://yro.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10630231&cid=54447693/ ... apk

  37. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion