Preface: I wanted to write out some thoughts and elaborate on my feelings. Yesterday I was met with 5 promoted advertisements out of 10 posts in my social media feed and it really got me thinking...
Exemplary
Preface: I wanted to write out some thoughts and elaborate on my feelings. Yesterday I was met with 5 promoted advertisements out of 10 posts in my social media feed and it really got me thinking about how out of hand advertisements and the premium models have become. Apologies in advance if this comes off as more of a rant.
Facebook, X, Reddit, Insta, Pinterest, etc. have all become increasingly flooded with paid advertisements and promoted content. Paired with the rise of artificially generated content, we have come to a point where the user experience and community on the internet is degrading at a rapid rate.
Many have talked about how X or Reddit is mostly bots talking to bots or how regrettable it is to pay with a Premium plan for a product which was once free simply to get rid of the advertisement overload of the current product. I find increased frustration with these two and feel saddened for those who are not in such a priviledged financial position as myself to pay for Premium plans. Why are feeds flooded with advertisements deemed acceptable in society today? Why aren't we as a community acting en masse to protest artificially generated content which is clogging up conversations and pushing agendas which are disingenuous to the greater community?
This model has created a regressive, two-tiered system where wealthier users pay for ad-free privacy, while lower-income users are forced to consume a degraded, ad-heavy product. It reminds me of the concept of "shadow work" where people are paying and wasting their time on things which provide no real substance to their own lives, but benefit the bottom line of these tech companies. I understand how we as consumers expect free digital services since it was the norm in the earlier days of the internet, but the overwhelming dominance of major platforms makes it difficult for us to migrate to alternatives without abandoning established social networks. I have been struggling to get myself off of the big platforms because the creators I have come to enjoy can only make their business model work through remaining on those platforms and having the largest target audience see thier product. In many cases, I have asked why those people do not make their own site and the answer defaults to "I will end up losing a lot of my customer base by switching off of X and onto my own platform. There are just more people looking at my content here." Because platforms function as both a monopoly on the service and a monopsony on the audience, creators cannot afford the churn rate of moving to an independent site. They are functionally captive to the algorithm's demands and big tech's "Town Square" model.
Platforms run at a loss initially to capture users and creators, exploiting network effects where a platform's value increases solely because everyone else is already there. Once users and creators are locked in due to the exceptionally high social and financial costs of switching, platforms shift their focus from the user experience to extracting value for shareholders, resulting in a dramatic increase in ad load and artificial content. We have seen this time and time again and I find myself increasingly frustrated by the event. Research on the consequences of advertising shows when privacy regulations or premium models are introduced, platforms compensate by shifting heavier ad burdens onto lower-income consumers, effectively taxing their time while wealthier users buy their way out (see link provided for a more in-depth analysis on this which I found of interest).
The lack of protest seems to stem from a collective action problem. Platforms did not flood feeds with ads and bots overnight. The degradation was gradual. Society accepts this because the alternative requires coordinating a mass exodus. Artificially generated content acts as a filler that keeps engagement metrics artificially high for advertisers, masking the actual decline in human interaction. This creates an illusion of a thriving community while the digital town square is hollowed out. The monetization of digital spaces has effectively privatized what was once viewed as a public utility, leaving users to bear the psychological and literal costs of navigating todays internet.
I have been working to make it so I don't think so cynically and believe the AI bubble is going to eventually pop and the advertising model overall will change to something more sustainable long term. It feels like I need to pay for almost all of my products online these days in order not to waste my time on advertisements or content which provide no real benefit to me. Seeing the botnets flood discussion threads has really put a damper on my interests in hobbies and hearing what other people have to say. I don't know what the right answer is or how we as a society can work to fix this issue. Curious to hear what the rest of the Tildes community thinks about this and if anyone else has similar thoughts with the ongoings of our modern AI driven age.
Preface: I wanted to write out some thoughts and elaborate on my feelings. Yesterday I was met with 5 promoted advertisements out of 10 posts in my social media feed and it really got me thinking about how out of hand advertisements and the premium models have become. Apologies in advance if this comes off as more of a rant.
Facebook, X, Reddit, Insta, Pinterest, etc. have all become increasingly flooded with paid advertisements and promoted content. Paired with the rise of artificially generated content, we have come to a point where the user experience and community on the internet is degrading at a rapid rate.
Many have talked about how X or Reddit is mostly bots talking to bots or how regrettable it is to pay with a Premium plan for a product which was once free simply to get rid of the advertisement overload of the current product. I find increased frustration with these two and feel saddened for those who are not in such a priviledged financial position as myself to pay for Premium plans. Why are feeds flooded with advertisements deemed acceptable in society today? Why aren't we as a community acting en masse to protest artificially generated content which is clogging up conversations and pushing agendas which are disingenuous to the greater community?
This model has created a regressive, two-tiered system where wealthier users pay for ad-free privacy, while lower-income users are forced to consume a degraded, ad-heavy product. It reminds me of the concept of "shadow work" where people are paying and wasting their time on things which provide no real substance to their own lives, but benefit the bottom line of these tech companies. I understand how we as consumers expect free digital services since it was the norm in the earlier days of the internet, but the overwhelming dominance of major platforms makes it difficult for us to migrate to alternatives without abandoning established social networks. I have been struggling to get myself off of the big platforms because the creators I have come to enjoy can only make their business model work through remaining on those platforms and having the largest target audience see thier product. In many cases, I have asked why those people do not make their own site and the answer defaults to "I will end up losing a lot of my customer base by switching off of X and onto my own platform. There are just more people looking at my content here." Because platforms function as both a monopoly on the service and a monopsony on the audience, creators cannot afford the churn rate of moving to an independent site. They are functionally captive to the algorithm's demands and big tech's "Town Square" model.
Platforms run at a loss initially to capture users and creators, exploiting network effects where a platform's value increases solely because everyone else is already there. Once users and creators are locked in due to the exceptionally high social and financial costs of switching, platforms shift their focus from the user experience to extracting value for shareholders, resulting in a dramatic increase in ad load and artificial content. We have seen this time and time again and I find myself increasingly frustrated by the event. Research on the consequences of advertising shows when privacy regulations or premium models are introduced, platforms compensate by shifting heavier ad burdens onto lower-income consumers, effectively taxing their time while wealthier users buy their way out (see link provided for a more in-depth analysis on this which I found of interest).
The lack of protest seems to stem from a collective action problem. Platforms did not flood feeds with ads and bots overnight. The degradation was gradual. Society accepts this because the alternative requires coordinating a mass exodus. Artificially generated content acts as a filler that keeps engagement metrics artificially high for advertisers, masking the actual decline in human interaction. This creates an illusion of a thriving community while the digital town square is hollowed out. The monetization of digital spaces has effectively privatized what was once viewed as a public utility, leaving users to bear the psychological and literal costs of navigating todays internet.
I have been working to make it so I don't think so cynically and believe the AI bubble is going to eventually pop and the advertising model overall will change to something more sustainable long term. It feels like I need to pay for almost all of my products online these days in order not to waste my time on advertisements or content which provide no real benefit to me. Seeing the botnets flood discussion threads has really put a damper on my interests in hobbies and hearing what other people have to say. I don't know what the right answer is or how we as a society can work to fix this issue. Curious to hear what the rest of the Tildes community thinks about this and if anyone else has similar thoughts with the ongoings of our modern AI driven age.