StackOverflow has started showing ads

4 points by AlexanderTheGr8 ↗ HN
I recently saw that StackOverflow has started showing ads now. I wonder if this is the result of their acquisition earlier this year.

The ads are of the form "Imagine yourself at <Company Name>". Ublock Origin does not catch those ads.

What do you think about it?

9 comments

[ 4.8 ms ] story [ 34.3 ms ] thread
They have had various forms of ads for years.
I have been using stackoverflow for years and this is the first time I saw these type of ads. That's why I correlated it with their acquisition.
"these types of ads" is not quite "has started showing ads" from your headline, is it? (Especially if you use uBlock and it's thus no wonder you didn't see ads it has filters for already)
Unsurprised. It was just a matter of what scummy behavior the new owners were going to demand, and how egregious they were going to be about it.

It’s simple, at least for me: block the garbage if I can, forgo the site entirely if I can’t. And if I can’t, that means the vast majority of their users are having the same problem and will be similarly fed up.

I hope the new guys are smart enough to realize that alienating the community they just bought is not the best way to manage an investment.

I see. On a counterpoint, the new owners bought this company for billions of dollars. Don't you think they have the right to show ads to get money back?

And stackoverflow is so important that it's impossible to not use it. I am just hoping that someone improves ublock origin to catch these ads

I don't really mind that. I don't like the sort of ads that:

1) use noise or motion to catch your attention, or

2) have nothing to do with the site you're on (spammy), or

3) use sexual imagery, etc. to try to catch your eye

In other words, ads that try to take me out of the mindset I was in when I went to the webpage. Now, ads for developers, at Stack Overflow, might not be exactly what I was looking for, but it's honestly not that far off. I don't mind well-targeted ads, because every once in a while they're useful. I object to ads which are the equivalent of Viagra emails, which is what most ad-driven sites have (ok not literally Viagra ads, but close).

That makes sense.

Personally, I am not a fan of these ads because their frequency depends on who's willing to pay the most. Also, ads mean that not they are actively looking for revenue. So it's just a matter of time before more things change towards data collection, ads and revenue generation.

I don't think this is new.

I've seen ads on SO for at least the last 12 months (in Australia).

StackOverflow has had ads for as long as I can remember. The job ad on the sidebar you're describing has been there since at least 2018.