Firefly raises $30M to bring more ads to Ubers, Lyfts and taxis | Hacker News Reader

Firefly raises $30M to bring more ads to Ubers, Lyfts and taxis

techcrunch.com

24 pointsjbredeche22 comments

> He also described the Firefly approach as a “win-win-win scenario” — not just for drivers and advertisers, but also for local businesses, nonprofits and local governments, to whom the company has committed 10% of its inventory.

It's interesting how he left customers out of this description. I guess "win-win-win-lose" probably didn't test well.

I'll avoid using any service that adopts this, and can only hope that there will remain at least one who doesn't.

I sat in a ride a few weeks ago with a monitor in front of me hanging on the backseat, that I had no way to turn off, playing ads the whole time.

I guess this is ride sharing's path to being profitable, more intrusive advertising. Or pay a premium to get an ad-free ride.

If this is the future of ride sharing, looks like owning a car isn't going out of style anytime soon.

I don't like this, but it seems being advertised to at every possible moment is the price we pay for our societies' current modern development

> being advertised to at every possible moment is the price we pay for our societies' current modern development

It's the opposite - advertising is a parasitic phenomenon, leeching talent and resources that could otherwise be spent more productively, and what we get in return is an information environment skewed to make us spend money, and a landscape marred by this visual cancer.

But ads are in no way a fact of life we have to get used to - they can be defeated, or at least kept at bay. Some cities have banned them: http://www.worldwatch.org/node/5338

Ads considered harmful.

I'm giving that driver 1 star every time, until my rides are ad free or I can't take any more rides.

Not surprising, this already exists in cabs and Uber's whole plan is "like cabs but worse for the drivers".

Did you give 5 stars for the ride?

> I had no way to turn off, playing ads the whole time

Carry a paper napkin or restickable mouse pad with you

Or tell the driver that if he doesn't turn off the screen, you're not taking the ride. And follow through.

I'm not totally sure how the rating system works but I think that behavior could get you locked out pretty quickly? I would think giving a low rating for the ride is still effective and doesn't jeopardize your ability to still use the service.

You could also just ask the driver to turn the screen off without threatening to cancel the trip as a first step.

With Lyft and Uber, maybe. Since I already don't use Uber and will no longer use Lyft, I am personally only concerned about the impact with real taxi services and didn't consider ride-sharing in my response. That was an oversight.

But, with real taxis anyway, this is what I will do.

> You could also just ask the driver to turn the screen off without threatening to cancel the trip as a first step.

Yes, that is the actual approach I'd take. It's always nice to start as nonconfrontational as possible. But since I won't be taking the ride if the screen is on, the entire exchange has to be complete before the ride actually starts.

I smell a business idea: properly sized covers for these monitors

I am going to wear an iPad around my neck, sit in the middle seat, and display ads in the Uber driver’s rearview mirror. This is the last frontier.

More ads. Just what we fucking need.

Any Uber with advertising in the passenger cabin instantly gets 1-star rated.

These LED grids are bright, often animated, and distracting to other drivers and cyclists. Cities and DMVs should regulate their use.

this crud is dangerous for motorists and distracts drivers with images on motorways. Im surprised this is permitted in California, and not seen as a misuse of the laws that keep screens away from drivers. (ie no double DIN displays showing movies, cellphones, etc)

How much longer before they turn on the webcams on the tablets they'll be giving drivers (I assume this is how it'll work) to ensure that users are actually watching the ads?

> Firefly raises $30M to bring more cancer to Ubers, Lyfts and taxis

Fixed that for you.

It’s a shame that 30M is being burned to make the daily routing even worse for hundreds of thousands of people instead of improving it.

I wonder why Uber and Lyft hasn't come with their own version of screens on the back showing ads.

Maybe they will.. uberAd ride or something. Might be cheaper than the regular uber or become a pool default.

More ads! Just what the world needs! Congrats, folks!

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