Google’s Chrome ad blocker means the Web’s largest ad company is also now advertising’s biggest traffic cop - The Washington Post

Earlier in the article: "By addressing the ads that Google surveys have found to be most annoying, Chrome’s tool may persuade Internet users not to take more drastic options to hide or eliminate all online ads from their screens." Also see Google's New Ad Blocker Changed the Web Before It Even Switched On (Wired).

"Some note that the company had a lot of say in writing the standards, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal. Paul Boyle, vice president of public policy for the News Media Alliance, told the Associated Press that Google’s decision to incorporate these standards into Chrome turns the voluntary standards into de facto law.

Reinhardt said that the new Chrome feature is likely to accelerate new trends in the digital ad space, including fueling Google and Facebook’s ad duopoly. As for publishers, he said, it’s already clear that many are pushing subscriptions more heavily to offset the need for more aggressive advertising — a trend that Google’s new tool will probably encourage."

Google’s Chrome ad blocker means the Web’s largest ad company is also now advertising’s biggest traffic cop - The Washington Post