An advertising-free internet may seem utopian, but some people are already living that dream thanks to popular browser extensions that block advertisements on computers. Two of the most popular, Adblock Plus and AdBlock, have more than 340 million downloads.
Now these companies are moving into the mobile market. Within 24 hours of Adblock Plus launching an ad-free browser for Android devices last Wednesday, it logged more than 200,000 downloads.
It took years for desktop ad blocking to become popular, and rapid mobile growth could devastate websites dependent on ad revenue. Experts say there's a simple solution, however: stop making annoying ads and people won't need ad blockers.
"We're not against advertising," says Ben Williams, communications and operations director for Eyeo, which operates Adblock Plus. "We think that advertising can be better."
Blocks 'anything under the sun'
Ad blocking extensions prevent users from seeing advertisements on websites... Adblock Plus blocks "basically anything under the sun," he says. That includes pop-ups, video, Facebook and Twitter ads.
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