French publishers ask Tim Cook to abandon forthcoming Web Eraser
Advertisers and publishers in France have jointly written to Tim Cook imploring Apple to not roll out the ability for Safari users to selectively erase portions of sites, such as ads.
Safari getting new AI tools in iOS 18
Apple has not even announced the forthcoming Web Eraser -- exclusively uncovered by AppleInsider -- but the expectation that it will come soon has already galvanized UK publishers into asking Tim Cook for it to be abandoned. Now according to Business Insider, a group of French trade bodies are doing the same on behalf of their publishing and advertising industry
"Besides the extremely short notice period and the lack of detailed and verified information on this new feature," says the letter, "it raises numerous questions, particularly concerning legal and editorial responsibilities that Apple has still not responded to."
The group, including Geste, SRI, and digital marketing trade body Alliance Digitale, say that the feature would jeopardize ad sales "in an already troubled period."
"[It would] restrict citizens' access to free, diverse, and quality information," continues the letter to Cook, "with significant consequences for pluralism, content accessibility, and democratic vitality. The group estimates that Safari has around 25% of the whole browser market in France, and with mobile devices it's almost 90%.
Noting that the feature has the potential to threaten 100,000 jobs in France, the trade group simultaneously sent a copy of its letter to French ministers of culture and the economy, as well as Thierry Breton, the European Commissioner for internal markets.
Apple has not commented on the French group's letter. It apparently has not responded to the UK letter, either, despite that being sent around May 10.
If the Web Eraser makes it into iOS 18, iPadOS 18, or the next version of macOS, it will be announced at WWDC 2024.
Read on AppleInsider
Comments
At any rate, I control what gets downloaded to my device. Ads are malware vectors; ad blocking is a security measure. Even the FBI recommends using them now.
I'm all for stripping away the more useless ones. Consumers have been tired.
I remember the first Apple foray into Safari features that stop auto-play videos .
They worked around it just like they'll work around Web Eraser. I don't feel
Pity for any of these companies. They've poisoned the web with their ever
increasing annoyances with advertising payloads. Apple has no duty to
make Malware more accessible.
They forgot to tell us that… they will be sell our private user data to advertisers!
If we remember the paper newspapers… they had lots of ads —the most selling newspaper in Argentina had more of 60% of its paper surface filled with ads—… but those ads did neither track us nor steal our use behavior.
Maybe Apple can implement a ‘Track Eraser’: It leaves the page as it is… but erases all the ‘tracking code’ in the ads. You just see them!
No, not it would not. Actually allowing citizens to view what they want free from obtrusive ads that spy on them is the exact opposite of that.
If it was a private letter dealing with rumoured OS changes, then that would be OK because anyone with a business related interest should move in their own interests and behind the scenes dialogue is very common.
If, on the other hand, it was fished out to the media or posted as an open letter, that would definitely be jumping the gun.
We have Google planning to deprecate some cookies. Not to limit tracking but to force companies to do tracking through Google Advertising Manager with PPID.
And we have Apple being so tired of creators that editing the products from publishers is fine with Apple.
Content can be financed either by ads and/or by paywall. Removing ads without paying is stealing. Surely there must be legal limitations to tracking etc. and users should have the option to avoid tracking by paying. But to let customers skip payment and modify products shouldn't be allowed. And yes... the first digital device from Jobs/Woz allowed people to call long distance without paying. To see something similar from Apple today is not OK.
If the publishers did not sell our data and if the ads did not play video or suck cpu cycles, if they were simple image links, then most people would have no problem with them.
But if the EU’s priority is sticking it to big (American) tech we will know soon enough. Love the invention of concepts like “duopoly” that governments use to do their thing.
https://blockadblock.com/adblocking/adblockers-dont-break-the-law-except-when-they-do/
Nor do publishers rely on ad revenue alone:
https://digitalethics.org/essays/ad-blocking-theft
More to the point, when will the media & ad industries accept that people detest ads?
I use Safari, ad blockers, pop up blockers and every privacy feature available to prevent the ceaseless harvesting of my data and ability to target me. I value my privacy. Apple understands this and is catering to it.
The media & ad industries (especially Google) have only themselves to blame for the situation they are now in. Indeed, if Apple improves my ability to block ads and tracking even further, I will embrace it.
The above said, I happily pay (via subscriptions) for quality journalism and other media. This is the way forward. No ads!!!