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Comment by akoboldfrying | Hacker News Reader

There certainly is a contradiction, but it's so deeply ingrained that using ad blockers is OK that people can't see it even when it's right in front of their faces.

If everyone used 100% effective ad blockers, Alphabet (minus GCP) and Meta would not exist, and nor would the very large number of free-as-in-beer services that make up a large part of what makes the internet useful to people.

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> If everyone used 100% effective ad blockers, Alphabet (minus GCP) and Meta would not exist

Sounds incredible. How do we make this paradise happen?

Remember the part about all the free-as-in-beer stuff on the internet that people find really useful, and that wouldn't exist if not for ads?

That stuff doesn't depend on Alphabet and Meta specifically. It depends on ads. No ads = no that stuff. Are you happy for it to all disappear?

What about all the free-as-in-beer stuff that doesn't depend on ads? Like, er, this site?

It's not free, we pay for it with our attention. I'd rather pay with money.

How does my attention, the time I spend reading news.ycombinator.com, pay for the site? I DON'T run an ad blocker, but I am not watching any ads here.

HN is a recruitment tool for Y Combinator. Someone is paying for it with their attention.

Did you think they are running it out of the goodness of their heart?

HN regularly runs ads for YC companies. https://news.ycombinator.com/jobguide.html

For Meta specifically, what exactly would be so bad about all their stuff disappearing? I can't think of much. Messenger is the only thing of theirs that has any value as far as I can see, and there's many alternatives now.

Demur. RayBan Meta and Oakley Meta glasses are fantastic devices.

I'd rather have five or ten smaller competing companies getting various deals from the glasses manufacturers than a couple huge companies getting them all.

I wout be absolutely delighted for it to all disappear and for the internet to go back to being only for enthusiasts again

Mostly because I don’t believe anything of value would actually be lost (note you provided no examples and I’m not sure any exist), that also sounds incredible. So again, how do we make this no-ads paradise happen?

The internet worked before everything was plastered with ads.

> nor would the very large number of free-as-in-beer services that make up a large part of what makes the internet useful to people.

Whatever replaced them could hardly be worse than the shit we currently have. I refuse to believe we live in a global maximum.

You could be right, but I personally am much more comfortable paying with a few milliseconds of my attention for news/email/short comedy clips/timezone conversion/etc. than even a single cent of actual money. And it has to be one or the other -- right?

Of course you are, that's why we are in this Faustian bargain. It's hard to compete with free-as-in-beer.

>than even a single cent of actual money.

I think we often pay those cents without knowing. Companies we employ or purchase from despite never having been subject to their adspend, etc

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