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Apple, having released the Ad-blocker extension genie out of its bottle on their Safari Browser in September 2015, seems to be regretting their actions.

Especially as it has resulted in a 200% increase in the installation of Ad-blockers on mobile devices in the first Quarter of 2016!

Geezam - How Apple allowing Sponsored Articles in Apple News as Google Ads Blockade continues - 14-03-2016 LHDEER (2)

Heck, 21% weren’t even sure what they’d installed, albeit they may be lying with sheepish grins, now wanting to let Schrodinger’s Cat out of the Box.

Geezam - How Apple allowing Sponsored Articles in Apple News as Google Ads Blockade continues - 14-03-2016 LHDEER (1)

They’re now allowing advertisers to publish Sponsored articles right alongside editorial stories in the Apple News app. The only defense with these articles, which glowing hawk various products, is that they have a little tag in the preview with the word “Sponsored”.

Launched sometime in April 2016, the change by Apple News allows for sharing of Sponsored Articles, which are prominently displayed alongside regular news articles on the Apple Newsstand. Publishers much have raised Cain over Apple lack of judgement in allowing Ad-blockers for them to even thing o sacrificing their journalistic integrity to allow the wheat and the tares to grow together.

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Especially as the money is in the growing of the tares, not the wheat, the journalist in my analogy.

Albeit improving Apple iPhone user experience, the blockade, Star Wars The Phantom Menace Style was killing the Google Golden Goose as noted in Why the Rise of ad-Blockers is killing free Publisher and App Content.

So why did Apple change their mind?

Apple bend to publishers demands – Sponsored Articles a temporary fix as Google Ad Sense dying

Publishers of various stripes in the US mainland and internationally, from newspapers, magazines to lowly blogs like Geezam, depend on Google AdSense for our Bread and butter, Tessanne Chin Style.

Plus Apple decision to allow ad blockers was also hurting Apple, since the get a cut of the subscription from magazine and newspaper subscriptions. With Google AdSense Ads blocked, many publishers no doubt complained to Apple, as blocking Google AdSense meant that they couldn’t make money.

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Remember, a subscription is a one off payment, but Google AdSense pays publishers handsomely as traffic ramps up on your blog. With CPM (Click per 1000) rates as low as US$1, and as high a US$5 for YouTube Videos and Podcasts, monetizing traffic levels as high as 10,000 plus page views per day is crucial to the survival of any small blog.

So score one for Apple for coming to their senses and balancing their books (and ours!) by allowing Sponsored Articles. Google, however, needs to come up with a solution other than sponsored ads……like a new Ad format altogether as pointed out in Why Google needs new Ad Formats as Telcos will block YouTube Ads.

Otherwise when Ad-blockers start blocking YouTube Video Ads, YouTube Red will literally mean Google is going bankrupt.

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