Embedded adverts are subtle, for now, but you did know that there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Right?
Embedded adverts are subtle, for now, but you did know that there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Right?
It’s something of a truism to say that ‘if you’re not paying for something, you are the product’; as uncomfortable as the realisation may be it’s fundamental to how advertising-based income models work. It should come as no surprise therefore that the supposedly ‘free’ upgrade to Windows 10 may soon come with a catch: embedded adverts at the OS level.
Via Fudzilla comes news that with the latest Windows Build (build 10565 for those counting a home) Microsoft have begun to demo adverts for ‘Suggested Applications’ within the OS, specifically the Start Menu. Currently the adverts refer to apps on Microsoft’s integrated Windows Store, and suggestions are based on user activity – commonly used applications, websites visited etc.
At this time it’s possible to disable the ads and keep on trucking. Furthermore the ads are relatively discrete, but them appearing in a location as critical as the Start Menu is troubling. As welcome as tools and options for enthusiasts and power users to tap into and disable problematic content are, those most vulnerable to techniques such as these may not have this level of technical knowledge. Not to mention the new potential vector for malware.
There’s no such thing as a free lunch, and Microsoft could be playing the long game with the bill for Windows 10.
SOURCE: FudZilla
