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James Wohr|September 04, 2024
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Advertising on the internet has always created a tug-of-war between consumers and advertisers. Consumers want clean user experiences and their data to be protected, while advertising helps customers get exposure to products and services. Now, consumers can shut advertisers out of their experiences with ad blocking technology. But as digital media platforms become increasingly reliant on advertisers’ money, patience for ad blocking has worn thin.
Ad blocking is the removal or altering of advertising in digital channels by consumers. It includes usage patterns, attitudes, and software on desktop, mobile, and connected TV devices. Some popular ad blocking software like AdBlock and AdBlock Plus can be downloaded as extensions on a web browser, while browsers like Ghostery are designed to block intrusive ads and anonymize personal data.
Why do consumers use ad blockers?
Internet users mainly use ad blockers to avoid intrusive, interruptive, or repetitive ads and to get faster page speeds, as high ad loads can affect page loading times. But data privacy concerns also drive some consumers to use ad blockers to prevent tracking.
- As of March 2023, 31% of US adult consumers said they used an ad blocker to protect their privacy, with baby boomers (31%) being more likely than Gen Zers (27%) to use the tech, according to Tinuiti.
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32.8% of worldwide internet users use ad blockers at least sometimes when online, GWI data shows.. Among those, younger consumers are more likely to use ad blockers, with 25- to 34-year-olds taking the top spot. Ad blockers are most popular among men aged 25-34, with 36.9% using ad blocking software, compared to 31.6% of women in the same age group per DataReportal.
How does ad blocking affect marketers?
As publishers shift to subscription models, consumers are opting to pay to receive digital content without ads or with reduced ad loads. But in most media channels, consumers are more likely to accept ads when they don’t have to pay to subscribe or can pay less for a subscription.
For example, 82% of US consumers said they would continue to use platforms like Google, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and other news and media outlets for free with ads rather than pay to use them, according to a March 2023 Tinuiti survey.
- Consumers have shown a willingness to engage with ads if they’re tailored to their interests, and they’re more willing to have their data collected if it means creating a better online experience—but only if that data is being used responsibly and collected on consumers’ terms.
- Consumers are also more receptive to lighter, less intrusive ad experiences and incentivized ads that give them more control, such as rewarded video ads.
- Most consumers dislike ads on publisher websites, and they especially dislike video ads, but some have more neutral feelings toward web ads.
As consumers use ad blockers, the tech makes it harder for advertisers to track and measure their ad campaigns, which could negatively affect advertising revenues.
Tolerance for ad blockers by publishers and platforms is waning. YouTube is leading the charge against video ad blockers, testing a way to warn viewers with ad blocking extensions enabled that they will need to disable their ad blocker, whitelist YouTube, or be restricted to watching only three videos.
Audio streamers like Spotify and Pandora have also been testing and implementing anti-ad blocking technology since 2018. Ad blocking technology will likely always exist in some form, but to what extent still remains to be seen.
Meanwhile, new platforms like Arc Browser by The Browser Company come with ad blocking built in, though users can disable that feature.
This article has been updated. Original was posted October 11, 2023.
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