Google does not intend to block advertising, but the blockers themselves

Google studies include an ad blocker in the desktop versions and mobile phone of its Chrome web browser, says the Wall Street Journal citing sources close to the multinational plans.

The function is still under study, but could be announced within a few weeks. It could even become activated by default to block intrusive ads and create a bad web browsing experience.Who defines which ads to block? A coalition of companies dedicated to online media and advertising called Coalition for Better Ads.

Block advertising to protect it

The move may seem counterproductive nonsense to Google’s main business: advertising. But is not. On the other hand, using a built-in Chrome blocker that respects its own ads, users are prevented from installing other less permissive blockers with their ads, such as the popular Adblock Plus, a blocker that supposedly improves the browsing experience, but adds to its filters to advertisers who previously pass through cash. Google among them.

Google generated 22,399 million dollars in advertising revenue in the last quarter of 2016 . But advertising blockers continue to grow in popularity. Up to 30% of users used one in 2016, according to PageFair estimates. Google needs to protect your business, even if it is using the tools that attack it.

The problem is that Google is just one of those involved. The media and other websites also live on advertising. Will Google decide what is right and what is wrong when he is one of the stakeholders?

If the option is activated by default, the websites could reduce the reach of their campaigns. Certain types of ads such as full-screen “interstitials” or videos that play on their own would not be displayed in the browser, as Coalition for Better Ads indicates in its definition of “unacceptable advertising”. They are the measures, which do not respect the user, that some companies took due to the plummeting price of printing advertising. It could also face numerous demands or regulation in the European Union. By blocking certain advertising platforms, you are unequivocally favoring yours, which will never be blocked by your browser.

It will be a blocker of blockers aimed at protecting your business , not the browsing experience of the users who decided to cut to the chase and block all types of advertising, while the media and websites are still the great victims.