Re: Interesting Twist to BANNER ADVERTISING
FRED WROTE:
> Not true. You would be hard pressed to identify one
> single web surfer who REQUESTED that ad. I have a real
> problem calling banner exchange ads "content". Maybe
> it's just me.
This thread is a shining example of the lack of common
sense that occasionally permeates the web.
When a surfer requests my page, they are requesting it
because of the information that *I* put on that page.
I pay to present that information to the "web" as a
whole. I decide what goes on that page. No, surfers are
not requesting any specific ad. The ad is my gravy and
my revenue, and I decide what ad they see on *my* page.
I once suggested to a client that he download a piece
of software from tucows.com. He told me that he "could
not load that site", and got a message that it was not
compatable with his ISP's browser. It turns out that
his ISP blocked "specific" sites from their browser. I
replied: "There is nothing wrong with the Tucows site.
You're a big boy- are you going to let your ISP tell
you what you can see on the Internet? You need a Net
Nanny?"
He switched ISP's that day - and got a real browser. So
did many of his co-workers, family & friends.
The question isn't whether something can be done. It's
whether people will swallow it and smile. Ethics always
win, my friend, and there's a lot of ethical ways to
make money that don't land one's butt in court. An ISP
swapping site banners without the site owner's consent
is not one of them. Any ISP that wants to be around
for the long haul has the common sense to know that.
Linda Caroll
swdomains
Received on Tue Jan 18 2000 - 06:51:20 CST
