Advertising Week, a top industry confab that brings together Madison Avenue and digital ad players, is in full swing this week. Facebook, Google and YouTube have used the occasion to roll out new ad tools and e-commerce ad initiatives.
But there was also a more controversial topic amid all the discussions: ad blockers. Those programs can be installed on your PC — and more recently on your iPhone or iPad — to prevent ads from popping up on your browser. Ad blockers have spurred concern among publishers and some advertisers who are grappling with how the technology might affect their businesses.
For consumers, ad blocking presents a philosophical choice. One the one hand, they can declutter their mobile web browsing of ads with a blocker. On the other hand, ads underlie many online businesses and choking off the promotions may hurt those businesses.
So to help consumers decide whether ad blockers are worthwhile installing on iPhones and iPads, Brian X. Chen decided to bring some original data to the discussion. He worked with The New York Times graphics department to test how ad blockers on iPhones affect webpage sizes, load times and battery life. The results may give food for thought about whether to download one of these programs.