Google is increasing the number of ads in Gmail, showing them in the middle of inboxes

[midian182]

A hot potato: How could Google make Gmail better? How about adding something nobody wants: more ads, including some in the middle of email lists. Not surprisingly, people aren't happy about it. This is only a test so they might not be rolled out to everyone, but we know that Google isn't averse to ramming ads down users' throats.

Ads have appeared in Gmail for a long time now, placed at the top of the Promotions and Social inboxes, but it seems Google feels that users are ready for more - and in intrusive locations.

9to5Google spotted that, starting with mobile, Google has started showing ads in the Gmail inbox's "Updates" filter, where you'll find emails about orders, bills, and more. It marks the first time that ads have appeared in this section.

The two ads at the top of the Updates tab email list mean that all three filters now contain advertisements. It's a particular annoyance for users who can, at first glance, mistake these advertisements for real email messages, even with the green 'Ad' box next to them.

Desktop users haven't been spared the ads, either. They're appearing within email lists - not just at the top - in the Gmail tabs. The good news is that they haven't appeared in main inboxes.

Google's going ham with Gmail ads now pic.twitter.com/7ls0wTHoNR

– Mark Irvine, illegal Eurovision voter ðªðº (@MarkIrvine89) May 2, 2023

Elsewhere, users have reported seeing ads with full size images at the top of inboxes.

The changes have incurred the wrath of many Gmail users, understandably. One person tweeted that they were incensed to see random ads cluttering up their inboxes, while another said the practice should be illegal and demanded the ads return to the top only. Others are just angry at having to endure an increased number of advertisements in Gmail.

As a person who works very hard to keep my email in check, I am absolutely INCENSED that Gmail is just putting random ads in my inbox now??? pic.twitter.com/5LompTLLPL

– rosemary h (@rohallma) May 3, 2023

Not everyone who uses Google's email service has been seeing these ads. The company responded to an xda-developers question about the increase with the following statement:

We are always experimenting with formats and working on ways to help people discover and connect with new businesses. The Promotions tab shows promotional emails from businesses that people subscribe to, as well as offers and deals from companies people might like. We rolled out instream ads in the Promotions tab last year across mobile and in the past month expanded to desktop as well.

There's no guarantee that Google will roll out the extra ads to everyone, but whenever it's something that will make more money, companies tend to ignore user outcry.

Google introduced a new feature to Gmail last week, one that was actually appreciated by users: a blue verification check. Google says the icons will automatically appear in emails from companies that are part of Gmail's Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) feature, helping users identify which emails are genuine and which ones are scams.

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/98598-google-increasing-number-ads-gmail-showing-them-middle.html

 

[VaRmeNsI]

uBlock?

 

[dangh]

Boiling the frog, slowly. no large corporation will ever do what user wants when they already take them on the hook - only what shareholders wants, and shareholders wants always more money.
More software as a service makes a change only more difficult to push. Having gmail account for like 20 years means I won't be able to change it. Having digital 'rented' game collection with steam means I wont ever be able to get them and enjoy without the steam, whatever stupid anti consumer attempt they would like to do in future.
We need more small companies and more open market - better managed digital identity, proper digital market for buying/selling, no megacorporation preventing small companies from growing on market without extorting them to no end (iOS independent store anyone?) ... probably we will need another revolution to actually get back control on our lives. And most probably we wont, because too many people are too stupid to see changes around and live as false authorities told them to.

 

[ScottSoapbox]

If you aren’t paying, you aren’t the customer.

Switch to paid email or suck it up.

 

[NintPlayBox]

If you aren’t paying, you aren’t the customer.

Switch to paid email or suck it up.

Then eventually even the "paid email services" would eventually have ads as well, just like Hulu with ads, Netflix with ads and so on....just because you pay for something it doesn't mean it would stay ad-free, you are just conditioning these companies to raise their prices when you pay for ad-free services.

 

[veLa]

Are we surprised? The fact of the matter is that Google has almost no profitable ventures other than advertising on their own freemium services. They see something like ChatGPT disrupting the market, they're bound to response with... more ads.

 

[ScottSoapbox]

Then eventually even the "paid email services" would eventually have ads as well, just like Hulu with ads, Netflix with ads and so on....just because you pay for something it doesn't mean it would stay ad-free, you are just conditioning these companies to raise their prices when you pay for ad-free services.

First, those are terrible examples. Both Hulu and Netflix offer no ad options and an ad + lower cost subscription for poor/miserly people. Second, just because you can find some exception case doesn't disprove the rule.

The paid email services have a different business model than the "free" services. An ad company may offer some fee to the ad targets but that isn't the same thing as an actual for profit service deciding to anger their entire customer based while recruiting an entirely new customer base.

The problem is that *most consumers* have been "conditioned" by free options that they refuse to pay what things actually cost - thus the ad + a lower cost option. For example, free and $0.99 apps made most people freak out when some asked for -gasp- $5. Then those same people were aghast when the app died because it wasn't a viable to business to keep maintaining it.

 

[Uncle Al]

Looks like it's about time to move to another email application ......

 

[daffy duck]

While I have gmail accounts, I hate their gmail app/web interface, used it a few times and surely never will again. I really despise Google on all fronts. There are far better email clients around.

 

[toooooot]

Yahoo did it a 100 years ago.

 

[dangh]

If you aren’t paying, you aren’t the customer.

Switch to paid email or suck it up.

That's very weird statement. If I was offered an email account in order to better understand my behaviour and use it to create a better product, then I consider it a payment.
when I created account with Google I was told there will be no ads. And I'm getting a free email as a package with the Google account, which then is used for google pay, search engine, android devices and so on - all of those brings them revenue.
The most visible act of use dominant position and undercutting the competition is releasing a much cheaper product in order to undercut the competition and gain customers falsely claiming 'we will aleways be free' or 'cheaper' or similar - obviously without making promises which could be used in the court. And then use this position and lack of competition to 'change its mind'. It's simple 'predatory pricing' strategy.
And how is 'paying' related to lack of adverts? I paid for Windows, I still see ads there - even straight after a new install. I paid for number of Google services, and, yes, I still see ads there. So no - even if I'm paying, I still see advertisement. Something wrong, or you just like paying that much?
The point is, every large company right now are doing their best to undercut competition and promote their services as this is great stuff to make normal people bleeding money monthly. Obviously, that is not enough as everyone is money hungry, so on top of that they still selling ads and puts them whenever possible, to sustain the predatory prices strategy.
You either be vocal about it and take actions, or keep living as a sheep. Unfortunately, in this case it is really difficult, as changing email account is nearly impossible - with mobile phone you can easily go to different network and keep your number and decide, where your money goes. Here - there are no options to keep your email and choose which provider you want to pay it off.
Oh, btw - I don't have to pay money to be a customer. This is like last century dependence, and even then it wasn't true.

 

[Hodor]

Not to mention YouTube. You can't watch a single video without 2 ads at the start and NN ads inside the video. If you reload the same video you've just watched, it shows the startup ads again. It's getting abnormally annoying.

 

[jelabarre59]

I don't see these in Thunderbird. After all, a web browser is **NOT** an email client.

But I'm sure Google will eventually change their email protocol to some proprietary P.o.S. which will only be accessible through outrageously expensive 3rd-party licenses (or simply not available at all).