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IOS Apple IT Technology

Apple Now Lets Apps Send Ads in Push Notifications (theverge.com) 68

Posted by msmash from the how-about-that dept.
Apple will now allow push notifications to be used for advertising, so long as users agree to receive the ads first. From a report: Apple updated its App Store guidelines today with a change to its traditionally strict restrictions around push notifications. Apple has long banned apps from using notifications for "advertising, promotions, or direct marketing purposes," but that changes today. Apps can now send marketing notifications when "customers have explicitly opted in to receive them." Users must also be able to opt out of receiving the ads.
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Apple Now Lets Apps Send Ads in Push Notifications More

Apple Now Lets Apps Send Ads in Push Notifications

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  • And the slide continues... (Score:3)

    by JeffOwl ( 2858633 ) on Wednesday March 04, 2020 @06:44PM (#59797574)
    Down the long and slippery slope.

    • Re:And the slide continues... (Score:4, Informative)

      by ScooterBill ( 599835 ) on Wednesday March 04, 2020 @07:12PM (#59797696)

      Seriously, who in their right mind opts-in for advertising. Ok, the department creating the ads or testing might but no one else.

      These things work because companies know that all it takes is one click at the bottom of a gigantic document with lots of small print to...opt-in.

      • Or, if the conditions don't prevent it, opting in is required to actually make the app/site/whatever useful, so it's not really voluntary at all. This is a loophole as old as the sun, but it persists because it so often works.

        • There are sites that offer useful ads... like a cinema that lets me know about new movies they think Iâ(TM)d like. I donâ(TM)t want those as push notifications, though. I am having a hard time coming up with any ad that I urgently need to see interrupting whatever I am doing.

      • Samsung does something like this with their SmartThings app. I have a Samsung TV and wanted to use the SmartThings app to remotely interface with my TV. The problem is that the app apparently has some "proximity" based features, so it requests full location tracking on my phone. None of the features I want to use require location tracking, and my TV does not move, but the app wants access to my phone's location, 24/7, and will not run if you deny the permission.

        I got in contact with their support to discuss

        • At least it gave you the option. SmartThings isn't just for your tv... it's for iot. Hence it might need to know where. Contrast and compare to, say, Idevices whoselocation telemetry is on by default *and doesn't tell you*
        • Unplug your tv from the network and forget it has smart features. Use stand alone streaming devices instead because i guaran-fucking-ty you someday Samsung will update your tv and start injecting ads into the streams. They have already done it to Plex in the past.

    • That garbage has been happening long ago with false notifications of updates. Login to see an update! Never mind it was lie in order to increase eyeballs. Thus the reason Iâ(TM)ve stripped nearly every app from location or push notification. Now if I could just revoke my email addy.

    • Tim Cook needs to be fired for making Apple uncool and boring.

    • coming on Iphone: Ads for real good android phones

  • Apps can now send marketing notifications when "customers have explicitly opted in to receive them." Users must also be able to opt out of receiving the ads.

    I'm not an Apple user, so maybe someone can clarify, but TFS and TFA don't say whether push notifications for "ads" are separate from push notifications in general for an app. Will simply allowing an app to do push notifications *also* opt one into those for ads or are these two separate permissions? 'Cause combining them seem problematic and ripe for abuse.

    • The cynic in me says if you opt in for push notifications you'll also get ads and there won't be a separate mechanism to opt out of ads. I can't see Apple spending development effort creating a whole new class of settings in the Settings app to control ads separately from notifications.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by tlhIngan ( 30335 )

      I'm not an Apple user, so maybe someone can clarify, but TFS and TFA don't say whether push notifications for "ads" are separate from push notifications in general for an app. Will simply allowing an app to do push notifications *also* opt one into those for ads or are these two separate permissions? 'Cause combining them seem problematic and ripe for abuse.

      No, it's a separate and explicit setting. Right now it's combined.

      And yes, I said right now because that's the current situation. We're not talking abou

  • Push me, pull you! (Score:4, Informative)

    by dark.nebulae ( 3950923 ) on Wednesday March 04, 2020 @06:52PM (#59797620)

    You push me an ad, and I pull you off of my device!

    • In principle, I agree. Now here comes the nasty part. It's when an app has really got you reeled in, like a banking app. Then what they do, is they send an ad in between regular notifications. It's not enough to remove the app, it's very annoying and it's against the rules. But this has been going on for ages.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

        My bank's apps have been spamming me for years now. Not notifications but when you log in to the app between your accounts are ads for other services you don't want. It's extremely annoying because you can't even fit all your accounts on screen at once due to the ads.

        • Yeah, i knew we were fucked regarding ads when they started showing up in my bank app. Like why the fuck are you offering me apple shit in my goddamn balance sheet. This is MY data, only my stuff should be showing.
      • I never need my banking app to notify me. Email is a much better solution. Pull the data, dont let them push it at you.
    • Damn straight! This monetization madness has to stop or autonomous drones and signs will be stalking us with 3D holographic ads, calling us by name and trying to manipulatively extort us with resold personal data into buying their wares.

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

      Can't you just block those notifications? On Android you can block specific categories of notifications from an app while allowing others, so it's easy to block the ads while still allowing say message notifications.

  • That's one way to put it (Score:5, Interesting)

    by tlhIngan ( 30335 ) <slashdot.worf@net> on Wednesday March 04, 2020 @07:01PM (#59797646)

    Another way to put it is that Apple is cracking down on those abusers - ads in notifications already happen right now.

    Basically developers cannot just push ads as part of regular notifications, they have to separate them out - ads only if the user requests it, and everything else. Right now developers are getting away with "everything including ads". If you hate ads, you have no choice but to disable notifications as well.

    It can be spun both ways

    • I don't think there's anything wrong with ads - and long as the user is asked to and agrees that they receive time.

      Since iOS only lets an app ask for one thing at a time, it's not like that ask can be bundled with other permissions.

      Then since Apple has a rule, they can be very swift at punishing apps that violate it.

      • I don't think there's anything wrong with ads

        Well, I guess this is where we agree to disagree.

      • Odd, it seems they haven't been banning them. Many users above have explicitly said this is already happening widespread. Oh, that's right, they get 30% ad money.

        • Apple gets 0% ad money from an ad in a notification. It's not even possible from them to get money from an ad in a notification if there's nothing to distinguish a notification with an ad from a notification without an ad.

      • There's still a problem if I can't tell an ad notification from a notification notification even if I agree to ad notifications.

        For example, I put the Italo Treno app on my phone when I am Italy, to buy tickets on my phone instead of finding a ticket machine. Notifications about delay or what platform has been assigned are good, but then they mix in advertisements for sales other destinations. Notification about a ticket are readable without being fluent in Italian and will take you to the details of the ti

      • Ohh Kendall, always taking the lowest position. Ads blended directly into comms are a plague. Brought to you by Carls Jr.

        Fuck you, Im eating

  • Apple's cut from ad revenue? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by phalse phace ( 454635 ) on Wednesday March 04, 2020 @07:05PM (#59797664)

    How much is Apple getting from these ads?

  • This move is a revenue hedge for internal projections showing slowing iPhone and iPad sales. Same reason they rolled out a touchpad for the iPad. Though a move this egregious and in opposition to Apple's constant song of user / customer protection means the internal projections look really bad. Maybe the adjustments for supply chain issues from COVID-19 as well as related depressed economic activity have them spooked.

  • Who wants to? (Score:3)

    by AndyKron ( 937105 ) on Wednesday March 04, 2020 @07:09PM (#59797676)
    I want to know who the hell agrees to see ads on their phone and why they would want to

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by ceoyoyo ( 59147 )

      Every marketer on Earth. "Ads are extremely useful and necessary, letting you know about products you want to buy!" is what every one of them tells themselves (and everyone else who will listen). Which means they're all going to opt in. Right?

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by sad_ ( 7868 )

      they'll sell it to the users in one way or another;
      - earn $$$ buy viewing ads
      - don't miss out on deal with ads
      - the app stays free if you allow ads

      etc.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Merk42 ( 1906718 )

        - the app stays free if you allow ads

        - block all ads and/or sideload it.

        I'm entitled to whatever I want for free!!11

  • You get one chance and if your app annoy me with ads or irrelevant notifications, I disable notifications or delete that app.
    But we already have a sort of ads. Social media apps are a good example of "stealth ads", if you haven't checked their bloody app in a while, they will notify you with irrelevant notification to train you to check their app often and they will continue until to get the muscle memory to check your feed for any updates.

    • You get one chance and if your app annoy me with ads or irrelevant notifications, I disable notifications or delete that app.

      Sounds good.

      But we already have a sort of ads. Social media apps are a good example of "stealth ads", if you haven't checked their bloody app in a while, they will notify you with irrelevant notification to train you to check their app often and they will continue until to get the muscle memory to check your feed for any updates.

      Sounds like you're not following through though.

  • 'Apps can now send marketing notifications when "customers have explicitly opted in to receive them."'

    I can only speak for myself, but it already seems like iOS apps already try to inundate you with notifications. Nowadays when I see a notification from an app, I almost always immediately stop what I'm doing, go into Settings and remove its ability to send any more.

  • Man, Apple is just innovating the shit out of things, aren't they?

    That's some real forward-thinking customer-focused stuff right there, buddy.

    Finding new and more obnoxious ways to serve ads, I wonder how many teams and meetings it took to create this wonderful new paradigm.

    Apple: "It Just Advertises(tm)"

  • Push Notification adverts (Score:3)

    by sit1963nz ( 934837 ) on Wednesday March 04, 2020 @07:58PM (#59797864)
    just ONE push notification advert will be enough to push me into deleting the relevant App, permanently.

  • You want my eyeballs - they are going to cost you. How much are they worth ?

  • just a few weeks ago i was mulling the idea of either a google pixel 4 or an iphone 11, i went with the pixel 4, and am glad for that choice after reading this,

    now somebody post some bad press about android & google playstore

  • I don't know but that they'd allow this is a huge negative in my book. The headphone jack thing is another.

  • Hooray! (Score:3)

    by sad_ ( 7868 ) on Thursday March 05, 2020 @07:37AM (#59798896) Homepage

    YES! finally, ads in my phone's notifications!
    Because i didn't see enough ads already!

  • And any app that takes advantage of this will be uninstalled instantly.

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