AdBlocker ATS may be breaking EU law

Good morning all

I read this article this morning which seems relevant to ATS users in Europe. The EU thinks that the running of an anti ad-blocker script which I assume the ATS site does is against EU cookie law. Basically the EU is saying that web sites like this must ask permission first from the user before it can run a script to check whether your browser is using an adblocker plug in or addon before it can check.
link

Advertising on the internet is an emotive subject for many. I read a dreadful article earlier in a newspaper reporting on a survey conducted by an advertising company claiming that adblockers were breaking the internet The article is a load of rubbish as it was written by an advertising company.

I use an adblocker to save bandwidth rather than block advertisements. If the internet was not so expensive to use I would not use a blocker but I do not see why I should pay to receive ads and waste my bandwidth allocation thank you very much. I also have images turned off as well in my browser but that is because I am not well off.

It seems ATS will have to ask users whether its site has permission to run an adblocker test when they log in.

a reply to: ispyed

A very touchy area of contention, it is not ATS fault as they have to make money and advertising is the only viable option, the way they can get around this EU directive is at the ATS membership agreement stage, especially for new member's which if they have not updated they best had and also remember they are a US owned and based operation so technically not under EU power (though that is an area of contention at the moment as many jurisdiction's interfere with NET neutrality and remove it's democratic power - perhaps even worse than adware delivery).

I have no problem with the Add's so long as they stay un intrusive and ATS monitors to keep any adware at bay and PUP's from infecting there members system's which I am sure they do.

Beside's before the EU tacals outside website's it has hundred's of european site's whom are far more guilty of this with far worse advertisement distribution, take the NEXUS modding site's a set of gaming mod sites based and owned in England that first grew up around the modding of Bethesda game's but are now becoming the dominant game modding site as they consolidate ever more titles into there mod databases, million's of people visit there site for gaming mod's, un-official patches etc and most of those people are more at risk of being hacked or being made into a botnet (Since gaming rig's tend to be far more powerful and more desirable to bot makers).

So it is not just ATS but almost everyone as they gear up for the dreaded Net 2.0 with it's superhigh speed always on content delivery model based around media, so these site's are really the TV station's of today and tomorrow and with TV come's advertisement's, if states take over control in there region then this is accompanied by state run propeganda delivery as well.

# EU law.


No really.


To hell with it.

originally posted by: crazyewok
# EU law.


No really.


To hell with it.

Yeah, sure, even if it is to save you from that total observation and neverending spying on every web user.
I don´t care who made that law, but if it protects my privacy a little bit, i am with it!
And if the US don´t want to do such laws, somebody else has to create them.

Btw, ATS seems only to check for the bigger AdBlockers, i switched my ABP off, but have several other things running, never saw any ads on ATS, but i guess ATS thinks i would see their ads. No call to switch off my adblocker anymore, since i turned ABP off.

a reply to: ispyed


ATS is a US company based in the US and run from inside the US - I very much doubt EU law bothers them particularly.
I think stopping people using AdBlockers is BS and totally agree with the EU on this but I very much doubt it will have any effect on ATS whatsoever.

I don't care for ads either, but ATS has to make money to run the site, so unless every member is ready to donate a couple of times a year or pay a membership fee, it's just something you're going to have to live with.
I don't get ads. Ever. I even opened another tab to ATS, logged out and still don't see them.

a reply to: ispyed

In what way would ATS be governed by EU laws?

Considering it's an American company? I'm pretty sure SO has already posted about this being a non issue due to a variety of factors.

~Tenth

a reply to: Sargeras

You don't have to buy something for ATS to generate revenue. They are paid for every ad that is displayed.

originally posted by: tothetenthpower
a reply to: ispyed

In what way would ATS be governed by EU laws?

Considering it's an American company? I'm pretty sure SO has already posted about this being a non issue due to a variety of factors.

~Tenth

I am not sure, but I think it is only relevant in that the site could become inaccessible to Europeans.

The entire premise of ads is stupid.

They are paid for every ad that is displayed.

is it just me and the rest of these idiots

then the prophecy is true

a reply to: Sargeras

I ordered a catalog off an ad on ATS, does that count. And, if I ever get financially more stable, I will probably order something from the catalog, maybe?
Pop ups are annoying, so no, I don't respond to them. So are ads that introduce sound into your environment without your permission. They go beyond annoying and into being just inconsiderate. But, I don't see where a few banner ads on a page should bother anyone. The problem to me seems to be that there's too much "make money online", "fire your boss", "earn your millions here", drawing a bunch of people into trying to earn income who don't have the faintest idea how to do it. And, well, they seem to think that the secret of peddling their junk and earning money is by being as annoying as the telemarketers.

We dropped cable tv when we noticed just how much time we were spending watching the ads compared to the tv shows. it seems we were spending at least a third of that money for the honor of watching advertisements. and, the only way that is worth it is if the advertisers want to spend the time and resources producing super bowl quality ads throughout the year. the ads on ats are nothing compared to trying to watch you favorite tv series on cable tv!

a reply to: stargatetravels

i thought ATS was started by someone from England,

originally posted by: Zaphod58
a reply to: Sargeras

You don't have to buy something for ATS to generate revenue. They are paid for every ad that is displayed.

I don't think you understand my meaning.

It makes sense for ATS to post ads, they get paid for it.

It doesn't make sense for companies to pay to post intrusive ads, because I have asked around, and don't know even one person that has ever been motivated to buy anything because of an ad.

So why waste money on them then?

a reply to: Sargeras

considering how much money is spent on advertising, in all media, it's obviously effective. At least with the internet, you have a link you can click and it will take you right to the website, nice and efficient really. But, why do they advertise on the radio, a large portion of their listeners are in cars stuck in traffic jams heading to work. heck, if they were that effective, they'd probably be a main cause of accidents on the highways.

I have add blocker, can I find its source on my PC? no I cannot, anyone know where its hiding? damned if I do.
do not reply on this thread, I really go back to them once visited.

I don't mind adverts myself as long as they are just sidebar or the banners at top of the page, its the pages that you click 1 link and 3 pages pop up and 1 of them is always one of them popups that asks if your sure u want to leave the page, I don't know if its just my laptop but they force me to close explorer as they keep popping up over and over making it unusable
Streaming sites are the worst for this, I have to use blockers when I'm on them sites but not had a problem here on ATS

originally posted by: PhoenixOD
a reply to: stargatetravels

i thought ATS was started by someone from England,

It was indeed, about 10 mins from my house actually but is now based in the US.

originally posted by: dawnstar
a reply to: Sargeras

considering how much money is spent on advertising, in all media, it's obviously effective. At least with the internet, you have a link you can click and it will take you right to the website, nice and efficient really. But, why do they advertise on the radio, a large portion of their listeners are in cars stuck in traffic jams heading to work. heck, if they were that effective, they'd probably be a main cause of accidents on the highways.

That is kinda my meaning, because without the billions wasted on ads, all these products would be vastly cheaper.

That is one of the reasons prescription drugs are so expensive in the US, because of advertising.