Google fights ad blocker

Google has started a US campaign which gives people the opportunity to donate a small amount of money monthly in order to avoid Google ads. Instead of ads they receive a thank you message by Google.
Google Contributor is meant to fight the so-called ad blockers, software which prevent advertisements – banners, text, pre-roll videos or other sponsored advertorials which finance the free content – from appearing on the screen.
According to PageFair, an Irish research company which helps entrepreneurs understand the influence of ad blockers, already 22,7% of consumers have ad blocking software installed on their computer. This means that web pages paid for by advertisements miss out on about a quarter of their income, according to PageFair´s research of 220 websites. The same company states an increase of 43% year on year of the use of this software. Ad blockers are also available for mobile browsers. 6% of mobile surfers are said to have installed the software. If the trend continues at the same speed, the internet ad market will have reached the end of the road in 2018, says PageFair.
Google Contributor is currently available in a beta version. About a dozen of American companies are taking part, amongst which Mashable, The Onion and ScienceDaily.

Google is also set to launch an advert free YouTube channel in the US at a cost of 9.99US$ a month.