Mastodawn

AI companies adding ads to their AI systems would be the perfect solution, if we wanted young people to buy more Coca-Cola because their AI chat friend did not want to be friends with losers who drink Pepsi.

But is that really the world we want to live in?

I believe it is time our governments implement laws to prevent the pollution from ads everywhere we look. We need unbiased information accessible in a calm environment where people can think and thrive.

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Jeppe Feb 23

@randahl Imagine if ads were simple not allowed. People would actually have to figure out which product was best, based on the actual quality. Image all the small, local, companies with great quality products, but small advertisement budgets. They would thrive in such a world!

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Walter8100000 🇳🇱🇺🇦Feb 23

@jeppe @randahl We used to live in a world 'without ads'. 100 or 200 years ago there wasn't really any advertising except for mouth to mouth advertising. So even without advertising people were still going for other peoples advise and did not compare hundreds of products and suppliers to find the right one.

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Jeppe Feb 23

@Walter8100000 @randahl I would say that word-of-mouth (when not an "influencer") is much better than regular advertisement. I actively avoid ads everywhere I can, and I will also mute the TV if ads are being shown.

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Walter8100000 🇳🇱🇺🇦Feb 23

@jeppe @randahl Not really, word-of-mouth is impossible to regulate and personal interests (family, friends etc) will always have influence on it.
Advertising should be strictly regulated. Limited % of broadcast time or website surface, limited advertising towards kids etc.

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Otte Homan - remember Geordie Feb 23

@randahl would something like "ads on billboards only" in combination with "maximum 1 square m of billboard space per inhabitant per Council area" work?

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JimmyB (he/him)Feb 23

@randahl Yes - agree completely. The proliferation of marketing and saturation of all parts of life in advertising, is massively harmful to us I think.

The practices involved are deeply dystopian too: if you study marketing there are courses training you how to sell stuff to people that they neither want nor need. That has no place whatsoever in a university or place of education

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Ilka 🌐Feb 23

@randahl 100%! It would be more helpful to protect users, especially the young, if contend would be protected/limited instead of personal age verification/identification. Ads are 1 risk, fake news another, deliberate manipulation as well. I think it is like an illness: treat the cause, not the symptom. Verification/identification ads to the individual risk, b/c we all know everything can be hacked/stolen.

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