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For those of you who find Google’s ad targeting a little on the creepy side of life, there may be light at the end of your tunnel. Google will now allow users to opt out of all that targeted advertising that comes from AdMob and Google through the Market settings.
While it’s a great gesture for those who prefer more random ads; it’s a bit odd that Google will do this and not, or at least be the last to, allow for cookie blocking in their Chrome browser. Couple it all with the fact that Google and Android make their bread and butter from advertising, and we are left with quite the mystery on our hands, Scoob.
[Image and Story via Android Central]
Cool
Antitrust concerns?
Nice. Does anyone know how I can force the market to update to the latest version? I’m running SkyRaider Athena on a rooted Droid Incredible and I can’t get the market to update past version 2.2.6.
If I remember right go to settings->application settings->manage applications. Somewhere in there (most likely under the “all” or “downloaded” tabs) should be “Market”. Select it, clear both data and cache, force stop, then go into the market. Again, this is only what I remember the process being on my 2.2 Samsung Moment and could be wrong/slightly off about it. If I am wrong, all you’ll end up doing is possibly clearing your search history and cache (which gets rebuilt as you browse new stuff). Nothing too detrimental about that. Hope this works for you. :) Note: just did it on my phone, you might be met with a TOS screen that you need to agree to. My current version is 2.3.4 (no joke!)
Another note: this DOES clear search history and settings, but all of the apps you’ve downloaded still should show up in the “my apps” section. They do for me anyway. Also, if the update doesn’t go through, try rebooting and doing the process over again. I still don’t have the settings mentioned in the article though. Might be being pushed out now or over the next few days. Neither article says when.
i just checked to see what mine current version is and its say 2.3.6
Interesting. I mean, I do have a phone that has been out for well over a year. Maybe some of the updates aren’t getting pushed to it…
Ads? Is that what those annoying things that I’ve learned to block out are? :P
Some phones don’t have that choice….. Fucking Atrix.
Ah, I think you misunderstand me. I have ads, it’s just that I somehow tune them out.
That’s excellent. Opting out now.
I want better targeted ads. I like buying things. hahaa
Don’t really care. If you’re going to see ads, you might as well see ads that are relevant to you
I don’t care about this, since it’s just anonymous information, but I’d like to see the android ads become more advanced, similar to iAds.
If google made the ads more colorful and more useful, then the developers would be more willing to develop free apps. Currently, most ads are words only, but I’m not going to click on a basic, words only ad.
hmm you just clicked in response to words.
CanDMan’s right. Preemptive aversion of antitrust legal action. Very smart.
I don’t care, eiter way i will see adds. Would rather see an add for a real estate site when i’m trying to find a house than adds for “local girls in your area”
I also have version 2.3.6 and, of course, have that setting available. I’ll leave it enabled.
google: I want to +1 ads I like and -1 ads I don’t like. That way I can tell you directly what I think and you don’t have to try to figure it out by searching through all my stuff
You may be on to something. Sure ads can be bothersome; but more than once they have managed to save me money, including one purchase that saved me ~$300, all thanks to targeted ads.
Yep, that’s right idea. I was researching a duel zone wine fridge for a client and now all I see are wine fridge adds. Waisted advertising slots…
OK on my Milestone I get “Force Closed” errors when trying this. On my Atrix I still get ads after doing this. Help!?…
some people seem to be having difficulty understanding this … you’re not opting out of seeing ads, you simply will get random ads instead if ads that have something to do with your activity/interest/etc. you will get ads regardless of whether it’s checked or not
obviously a good news
I think it’s related to new EU regulation, which requires advertisers to give users an option to control targeted ads.
http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/225297/europe_moves_to_give_consumers_control_of_online_advertising.html
Yeah , ads are such a nuisance , I know where to go if I want a product and I bet I can find a product without someone telling what to look for , 4 main ads , Auto, Auto Insurance , Attorneys , Drugs , I bet I can find anyone of them on a street corner or store .
AdFree strikes again! Oh the worries of non-rooted users
it’s not that great ; before, admob was not doing behavioral targeting…
http://searchengineland.com/google-intros-new-privacy-controls-for-mobile-consumers-73156