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While HTC Blinkfeed is one of the better home-screen newsfeeds on an Android device, it could be getting an update that would stand to annoy the heck out of many-a user. Upleaks has reason to believe HTC is readying a Blinkfeed update that will look to monetize the social feed.
It’ll do so by placing advertisements in the form of sponsored apps and deals on HTC or HTC-related products. It’s not unlike what you might see on Twitter or Facebook when leisurely scrolling through your friends’ latest musings.
If the mockup Upleaks posted is accurate it may not be too much of a hindrance as you can simply scroll right past any advertisement you don’t fancy, though we’d be sad to see nearly half of the display dominated by cash grabs before seeing our first piece of news, social content or weather and appointments.
This type of advertisement would be fine if HTC Blinkfeed were a standalone app that could be installed on non-HTC devices, but we’re not sure those who paid $600+ for an HTC phone would appreciate ads being shoved in their face. Sure, it’s just as easy to disable Blinkfeed as it is to disable anything on a typical Android phone, but if you have to sacrifice a useful feature to dodge this sort of annoyance then there’s a definite problem.
It’s worth noting that HTC is still only in the “planning” stages (if this is even true), so there’s a chance they may not even go through with it. We’re not sure if community uproar could be enough to get them to reconsider, but you’d better start yelling now if you want to make sure this sort of thing never sees the light of day.
How many users disabled or removed blinkfeed after getting their device?
I like it – but for me, it’s just another button on Nova. No reason for it to dominate.
I would love to use Blinkfeed, but I don’t use the stock launcher. I’m on the verge of migrating since the ROM I have does offer mods for the stock launcher.
You can use Blinkfeed with Nova and some others –
http://androidforums.com/index.php?posts/6540162
I switched to the Google Now launcher after a few days.
Sounds like someone trying to get some cash while circling the drain. Gone from being one of the best OEMs for support to abandoning year-old hardware and then adding advertising to flagship devices. That should be the final nail.
abandoning year old hardware on one hand and recycling year old designs on the other lmao…
this could work IF (HUGE F*CKING IF) it were opt in AND (GINORMOUS F*CK*NG AND) they were to share the ad revenue in some way with the end user…that’s the ONLY way I can see anyone putting up with advertisements…
The could also reduce the price of the phone as compensation for the ads.
i guess…but i think the revenue generated over the life of the phone would dwarf any discount they’d give…i also dislike when OEMs and carriers put their logos on the FRONT of the phone…i hate feeling like an unpaid walking ad…
That’s true but the need to do it in such a way that the user will benefits from it to. Who would like to have a 700€ phone with ads?
will someone please tell htc to stop putting an inch of bezel on their screens? just a bunch of wasted space…the screen is basically 4 inches once you subtract all the unnecessary additional bezeling…top bezel to go with your top bezel and bottom bezel to go with your bottom bezel?!? come on!!
Why not just get another phone? Sounds like you’re *having* to choose an HTC device and you’re not liking the options.
While I get that some people don’t want it there, it’s not like you *have* to get the phone.
ummmmm i have a right to an opinion the last time i checked…just my 2 cents…why don’t you go harass somebody else? it is a RECOMMENDATION…a very much needed one at that…maybe if they take my advice they’ll start selling phones again…HTC was once the number one android OEM and they’ve been steadily BLOWING IT despite all the nice reviews they’ve been getting…bleeding money…maybe some of us old HTC customers want to like HTC again????…
i don’t see you advising people who fawn over HTC’s design to keep their opinion to themselves so kindly hop of my d!ck, OK?
Did I say your opinion was wrong or shouldn’t have been stated? I mean, I even stated I understand how some people have those views. I actually accepted your opinion. ACCEPTED, like AGREED that you have an opinion and it’s fine to have one.
Recommendation? Okay, I get that. It’s pretty swell, except the recommendation is based on what you and what you believe others want. All the complaints about the “extra” space comes from tech websites. Tech websites are not the majority. You get me some real-world answers. I have yet to meet anyone that seemed to be upset that my phone had that extra space. Yes, there were a few, but those same few new what processor they had in their phone.
Harassing you? No sir, you’re just sensitive at this point. I asked why not get another phone.
Hop off your d!ck? Sir, I believe it’s time to stop dreaming, I was never even on it.
Care to deliberately misinterpret anything else I say?
Question: Why not just get another phone?
Answer: I HAVE A RIGHT TO STATE MY OPINION WHETHER OR NOT I OWN THE PHONE.
were you not saying i’m acting like i HAVE to buy the phone or is that just on my screen? that is NOT agreeing with me…learn ENGLISH!!!
“It’s pretty swell, except the recommendation is based on what you and what you believe others want.”
like i said: IT’S MY FACKING OPINION!!! WHICH I HAVE A RIGHT TO!!! plus you ignore the FACTS i stated to back up my OPINION (aka low sales despite RAVE REVIEWS).
LMFAO!! am i a tech review site?? idiot?? do i look like a f*ck*ng website??? am i not complaining about the extra space?? do you not think some of the other HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS of cell phone buyers that HAVE NOT BOUGHT AN HTC DEVICE FOR THE LAST THREE YEARS have complaints about all the extra space??? just tech websites??? did i post one link to any website?? LMFAO!!! strawman argument!!!! do websites write articles for people or do people write articles for websites??? LMFAO…you are an idiot!!! if you look at my disqus history you will find that i didn’t JUST start harping on the over bezel…i hate bezel and not just on HTC’s phone…the last time qas some LG Note…but i predicted a HORRIBLE year for HTC based on the leaks of the M9…so said…so done..they are having a HORRIBLE YEAR!!!!
who cares about your phone??? it’s YOUR phone…LMFAO…why would anybody be upset about YOUR phone??? OMG!!!! did i not begin my comment with “somebody please tell HTC”…or is that also on my screen only??? i don’t see anywhere “will someone please tell NoNickname90 that i don’t like the exorbitant bezel on his NoNickname90 M7, 8, and 9″….are you HTC?
Real world answers you say??? LMFAO!!! how about these:
the M7’s sales were HTC’s worse since 2010. REAL WORLD FACT!
the M8’s sales were worse than the M7’s. REAL WORLD FACT!
the M9’s sales has been worse than the M8’s. REAL WORLD FACT!
so yes…people DO SEE SOMETHING WRONG WITH THE PHONE!!!
hop off my DIIIICKKKK!!!!!
The screen is over 5 inches (it’s measured diagonally). The bezel is not wasted space. It is the front side of the phone that is not screen. It is like how a wall on your house around a window is not wasted space. There is actual phone behind that “bezel”. That buffer space helps protects your screen when you drop it and helps avoid accidentally touching the touchscreen.
But, if you want to continue spouting the moronic complaints Samsung’s paid off trolls invented, then continue. Maybe you can join the Tea Party if you like to believe incredibly stupid things that are easily debunked.
hi, CamillaS…apparently the “S” stands for slow or stupid or shill or something along those lines. while you’re right that the usable screen space is still 5″ you completely missed my point. or ignored it. the M9 is about the same size as a G3!!! only thing is a G3 has a whole HALF AN INCH MORE USABLE SCREEN SPACE!!!! hmmmm so one phone has a 5.5″ screen the other has 5″…that’s a difference of a HALF AN INCH…..they are the same height…but NOPE..no wasted space right?? LMFAO!!! that is 10% LESS SCREEN with the SAME HEIGHT!!!! what FUNCTION does having a bezel UNDER the bezel ALREADY existing at the TOP of the device serve?? NONE!!!! what FUNCTION does having a bezel ABOVE the bezel ALREADY existing at the BOTTOM of the device serve?? placing an HTC logo and absolutely NOTHING else!!! LMFAO…really…i’m talking about top and bottom bezel and your defense for the completely UNNECESSARY top and bottom bezel is the utility of the side bezel????…tell that to all the people buying samsung phones with edge screens!!!
now allow me to grab htc’s marketing d!ck out of ur mouth:
“That black area with the HTC logo on M8? Underneath is a huge amount of circuitry, antennae, etc. It’s not “empty” by any means.”
-HTC MARKETING
guess what’s under the ENTIRE GODDAMNED SCREEN?
“…a huge amount of circuitry, antennae, etc.”
just like jeff gordon you sound like a complete idiot. the design is sh!t i don’t care how many awards they get. it looks like CRAP! that’s my opinion and i don’t need samsung to pay me to have it. you on the other hand coming out here repeating an HTC employee’s marketing mumbo jumbo that makes no kind of real world sense are doing nothing but shilling for HTC…
btw the CORRECT wall/window equivalent comparison to the HTC design concept of OVERBEZELLING would be to have a 5 foot window in a space for a 6 foot window…with the metal surrounding of the window taking up all the extra space that would/should be used TO ACTUALLY SEE THROUGH THE F*CK*NG WINDOW…idiot…
hope HTC paid you well with your no profile picture troll account…
Man I really wanted the m9 to be my next device. Now I cant find a reason to go with it over the competitors. Sad.
not one single reason? lol…HTC is a zombie company right now…
Add this to the list of reasons I’m thankful that I jumped from the M7 to the S6…
You consider a rumor a reason? There is a rumor you molest children, a rumor I just now started. Since rumors are now fact, you should be arrested.
All HTC has to do is come out against the “rumor” and disparage it promising that they never have considered such a move and will never consider anything remotely similar to it in the future. It would be wise to quash this if it’s untrue, before it gets out of hand.
too late lol…
Like all the other rumors that come out? How about they not waste there time. If this gets out of hand, it’ll show how gullible people are. I’m tired of OEM’s having to fix things so people don’t have to think for themselves.
It’s a rumor, that means it can be wrong or right, but you shouldn’t let this sway your opinion. Of course, from the comments, people don’t think that way. Smh.
Thank you HTC, I had a tough time picking between the S6 and the M9. I loved my old HTC phones and planned to keep going with them. But the S6 is so much nicer than the previous Galaxy phones and Samsung finally offers larger memory options in the USA. This piece of news finally pushed me to get a Galaxy S6 -128GB, thank you HTC.
Like the issue I had with the XBOne’s 24/7 DRM, even if HTC doesn’t plan on doing this, I can’t in good concience buy another HTC phone again. The fact that a company would even entertain the idea of contemplating such a stupid move, has eternally turned me off to this.
I don’t care if this was a leak, we need a public apology for even considering this idea, or no more HTC phones for me, and I will no longer recommend them.
“The fact that a company would even entertain the idea of contemplating such a stupid move, has eternally turned me off to this.”
Well said, sir. Well said.
HTC isn’t the one saying they’re going to do this, it’s being rumored. Many rumors have come and not been true. I wouldn’t jump to such a negative conclusion just yet. Allow time to reveal what is hidden.
All HTC has to do is come out against the “rumor” and disparage it promising that they never have considered such a move and will never consider anything remotely similar to it in the future. It’s the best move to make.
You are impugning HTC because of a rumor? What are you, an idiot?
All HTC has to do is come out against the “rumor” and disparage it promising that they never have considered such a move and will never consider anything remotely similar to it in the future.
How much resources would you like companies to waste debunking stupidity and lies that anyone who can think for himself would see through, or at least wait for an official word?
I blame Phandroid for printing rumors just as much as I blame people for believing them, since most of them are false. If it becomes reality, then yes, complain until HTC stops.
how much money does it cost a company to put out a press release?
#SHILL
Why do they need to chase down every rumor? Who’s to say this is the only one? All it takes is someone to say “I have a leak” and give it to someone. There can be rumors generated weekly. LoL!!
I think it’s best to just let time reveal what is hidden. (I just like saying that. =.P)
where do you see me advocating chasing down every rumor??? the lady shill with the troll account with no picture asked how much resources the nice gentleman would like companies to waste debunking stupidity and lies…simply pointing out that it costs NOTHING
if you were so much against monetizing from ad revenue, why are you even using Android, created by the company famous for doing it first. Seems strangely hypocritical. Seems like you found justification for your unknown HTC hate. Good job.
Why should they take the time to debunk every silly rumor that comes along?
Also note that Blink Feed is easily turned off. IMHO it added no value with or without ads.
while this is a stupid thing to do – HTC does make nice phones – so all the leaves me to do IF i was to get this device – is to use NOVA, and bypass blinkfeed.
You can turn Blinkfeed off. For those that want to use the stock launcher.
They already have. Mines gets “recommendations.” Whatever the case is good luck with that, I know how much people dread getting advertising on something that they pay for, but the good thing they could offer a phone at a discount with advertising on it.
if by “discount” you mean free then i’m all for it…the amount of money they’ll generate selling ads tailored to their device users won’t be any little drop in the bucket…they either share the ad revenue or it’s a no go…
You can get the phone for free on contracts. You just pay for the service until you leave. =.3
here, here!!! lol
Why would it ever be free?! When someone would avoid going to blink feed, thus breaking the whole deal all together. If I meant free I would of said free, be reasonable on these kinds of things.
i AM being reasonable trollololol…the reason GMail, FB, and other similar services can get away with tailored ads is because they are FREE…we do not PAY to use them…YouTube is a perfect example…for those of you that don’t create/generate/curate content and just USE the free service you don’t get any piece of the ad revenue…for those of us that DO add value to the product that is YouTube ad revenue is shared with us…Google understands the dynamic very well…
if i have already PAID for a device then they need to PAY me to make any more money off of it. if they (or any other OEM for that matter) want to serve me tailored ads on MY phone then they need to PAY for that phone..
while you make a good point it doesn’t absolve them…
what about this? for every ad they display on my device they pay a certain amount of my cell phone bill…market it as making your bill disappear in the “BlinkFeed” of an eye…
trolllolololol
Troll? Free phone? Shared revenue? Something tells me that you’d be better off with a Obama phone and section 8…
shared revenue? hey closet racist: IT’S MY PHONE…if they want to make money off of MY PHONE and MY screen time with MY INFORMATION they need to PAY ME…but you’re teabagging corpate ball sucking @ss wouldn’t understand any of that because as everybody in the world is well aware, you and your ilk are the MINDNUMBINGLY DUMBEST KNOW-NOTHINGS ON THE PLANET!!!
obama phone? lmao…obama makes a phone????…LMFAO!!!…
from “obamaphone.com”:
In the 1980s, during the REAGAN (REPUBLICAN JESUS) administration, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) created the Universal Access Initiative (WHAT? OH? REPUBLICAN IDEA? WHAT’S THAT???). The goal was to “promote the availability of quality services at just, reasonable and affordable rates for all consumers.” After years of study, they proposed what we now call the Obama Phone. (hmmmm…i wonder why they don’t call it the REAGAN phone, or the BUSH phone, or the CLINTON phone?)
In the beginning, the “Obama Phone” offered subsidized phone service to Americans who were living at or below the poverty level. Please remember, this was in the early-to-mid-1980s, long before cell phones were invented, so this subsidy covered landlines only. (SO WAIT…REBUBLICANS WERE GIVING PEOPLE MONEY FOR PHONE SERVICE?…WAIT?…WHAT TF?…OBAMA PHONE IN THE 1980’S? …HEEYYYY WAYMENT!!!….REAGAN H. CHRIST WAS PRESIDENT AND THEY WERE GIVING OUT OBAMAPHONE MONEY IN THE 80’S??? THAFAAACCCKKK???!!??!) [he also raised taxes ELEVEN TIMES but a bagger never met a fact they didn’t ignore]
Later, the FCC introduced the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which proposed the Universal Service Fund requiring all providers of telecommunications services to contribute to a fund that would be used to increase nationwide access to advanced telecommunications services. The goal, according to the FCC, was to “advance the availability of such services to all consumers, including those in low income, rural, insular, and high-cost areas at rates that are reasonably comparable to those charged in urban areas.” (WAIT…THAT WAS UNDER CLINTON…WAYMENT!!?!…OBAMAPHONE?…WEREN’T BOTH HOUSES OF CONGRESS UNDER REPUBLICAN CONTROL FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE THE 1950’S???…REPUBLICAN LEGISLATION + CLINTON’S SIGNATURE = OBAMAPHONE?? HUH???….WAYYYYMENT!!!)
In other words, the FCC recognized that landlines were decreasing in importance as cell phones were increasing in use.
President Bill Clinton quickly signed the Telecommunications Act into law and President George Bush (WAYMENT THERE WAS ANOTHER REPUBLICAN PRESIDENT BEFORE OBAMAPHONE?…HMMM…WHAT’S GOING ON HERE???…WHY ARE ALL THESE REPUBLICANS OBAMAPHONING BEFORE OBAMA????…) continued the program. President Barack Obama has followed in their footsteps, and there is widespread confidence that succeeding presidents will continue to support the Obama Phone program.
like i said…#CLOSETRACIST!!!!
oh and i don’t need section 8 as I don’t have a landlord…i have lived my entire life in a big ass concrete and steel 2-story house in the u.s. virgin islands…
But, you want something free? The aforementioned companies you named has hundreds of millions of daily users. HTC barely has 20 million. Sending out hardware that cost 500 dollars to make for “free” would certainly bankrupt those guys.
But I guess that’s to be expected of people like you, free this, bankruptcy that, you want it all without having to put forth the effort.
i don’t WANT anything for free you lil know-nothing…THEY want to sell tailored ads…if THEY WANT to sell ad space on MY PHONE…they’re gonna have to pony up the dough…you people? lmfao…this is 2015…u think i’m that easily offended by genetically inferior human beings???…i’m right, you’re wrong…deal with it lmfao…you racists must really hate life lol…
the fact you think it costs $500 to make a phone just goes to prove my earlier point that YOU PEOPLE know absolutely nothing about nothing…how about you go actually get acquainted with reality and go look up how much it ACTUALLY costs to make a phone instead of dog-whistling all on the interwebz???
Cap locks, lols, followed by insults… The hallmarks of a jigga boo. Oh yeah, by the way that building you live in sounds like the projects.
how’s the lack of melanin treating you caveman??? lmfao!!!!
the HOUSE i live in is built to withstand natural disasters..something you people would know absolutely nothing about with your hurricane and tornado fodder paper mache houses LMFAO!!!!!
#youmad???
No, but judging by your passive aggression I’d say you are. Thing is you got a lot of crap started with the name calling thus ruling out the validation of your argument. I simply stated that they can offer the devices on discount, like amazon did with their kindles.
You got angry and called me a trollololol. Then I looked at your discuss history and you’re just a brute. First I felt sorry for you and then I got amazed by the fact you could pick your knuckles off the ground high enough to type.
No go along and eat yer watermelon, chicken, and play your NBA 2k jiggy
HAHAHA…you can deal it but cant take it huh?…probably another genetic defect of your recessive dna…lmfao….trollololol is LAUGHTER YOU DUMB F*CK!!! how can someone call you LAUGHTER?!?! you people are really, really, really stuck in the 1700’s brain-wise…do a google search once in a while Gomer…LMFAO!!!!…do you even understand how the internet works Cletus? LMFAO!!!!!
TROLLOLOLOL!!!!!!
get out the trailer park once in a while you inbred naked mole rat of a human LMAO!!!! please reply…keep em coming…you are providing me and all my “jigaboo” friends in the VI a bunch of laughs…i feel like i’m doing the world a favor keeping you busy online and out of your baby sister’s room LMFAO!!!!!!!!!!
I’m German, Italian, and Sioux. Live in upstate Maryland and make upper middle class wages. I’m done communicating with the likes of you. Go ahead and be king of the internet.
lmao!!!!! y’all cavemen love to claim other people’s genes with your sun scared dna…lmfao!!!! when you get paid $100/hr let me know…lmao!!!!
My mother is Sioux. And I highly doubt that you make more than $100 dollars an hour (u.s. anyways) after complaining about you want a free phone, crying on a tech blog, you look poorly groomed. $100 an hr? Well you’d be to high and mighty to be arguing on a tech blog about little to nothing.
You’re poor, loud, and abused. Why else would you lmfao!!!! Llh!!! And all the other dismisve and childish rebuffing that you do. You made a comment about I give you and your friends something to laugh at earlier. Well who, comes over to someone’s moms house to gather round and laugh at comments on phandroid?!
Your very words are incriminating of your ignorance, to you I say good day jigga boo and may the banana God guide you and your trollish ways else where.
don’t watch that picture…it’ll burn your eyes!!!
black people living good is anathema to you people…LMFAO!!!!
now let’s see where YOU live hahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!
p.s. this house wasn’t bought it was BUILT!!!!
It looks shabby, but I guess when you live in the slums anything looks good. Besides you’re probably over your mammies house. Oops
awwwww…poor guy has no house to take a picture of???…i see i failed at keeping you out of your sisters teepee last night…she’s prolly pregnant again…smh…you appalachian immigrant hillbillies have no decency…
That would guarantee I stop using Blinkfeed…
free phone? sign me up…you can blast me with all the ads you want…if i’m paying for the phone then we’re sharing in the bounty of the ad revenue…they can keep their “discount”
1) These tailored ads be on point. I saw an ad for some shoes and guess who is currently doing some shoe shopping? I hope y’all enjoy y’all 10 cents. >.>
2) I wouldn’t mind ads if they tailored to me. I give you my cookies, you give me something I want. But as long as you can turn it off or on, I don’t see an issue. I understand those that want it off. My gripe nowadays is I’m not seeing turn off and on options. It’s either disable it all together or forcefully use the new stuff.
Like that Facebook ribbon thing that shows at the top of your phone when you get a notification. Let me not digress, but I honestly HATE that thing. I want to turn it off, but I’m going off track. But I mean that thing shows even in full screen apps and swiping it away removes the notification as well, so I have to suffer and wait for it to get the HAIL out my way so I can click that link that’s RIGHT where that ribbon decided to be, so I end up opening Facebook… Ugh!! I hate that thing. >=.[
Already happening. I liked BlinkFeed. Don’t like the ads on my lockscreen that appeared with latest HTC lock screen app.
According to whom? Samsung?
Damn HTC, in high school you were the man HTC, tf happened to you?
I don’t see sponsored links and adverts on my Facebook “Newsfeed”, because it was exactly crap like that which finally made me delete my account.
Never use official Google, carrier or other apps that come bundled with your phone. Just use this party ones instead. Simple.
Response is simple..Not buying HTC, that’s all
Or just don’t use Blink Feed….
Of course, but that is not the message I was trying to relay. When you pay $650 for the phone, you don’t need this crap.
What “crap” do you need then? A lot of people get upset that they buy things and weeks later, it comes out cheaper, yet you (speaking in 3rd person) turned off ads, so you didn’t know about this offer.
No telling what the ad could be offering you if it’s tailored to you. If you don’t want ads, don’t be upset that you buy things for more when they come out or have a sale a week later.
I would like to add that when I’ve been saying “you” I was speaking in 3rd person and not directly referring to you, Paxmos. Just in case if you happen to be one of those take-everything-personally kinds of people. LoL!!
Naah, I don’t take things personally.
It’s sad that I have to put that. Too many people just come out of no where and feel attacked.
I look at as good feedback. It shows how we all think of and look at things differently.
Wow, good thing I deleted the Blinkfeed homepages from both my M7s. Must’ve been ESP.
I use the Google Now launcher on my M9. I never much cared for Blink Feed anyways.
Same here. I tried HTC’s launcher and Blink Feed for a few days. It was okay, but I prefer Google Now.
I like Blinkfeed, so I hope the rumors aren’t true. The minute I see an ad in Blinkfeed, I stop using it and switch launchers. It will also guarantee that my next phone will not be made by HTC.