Without adds we would not have google in its current form and we wouldn’t have gmail at all!
Without advertising, there would be far less demand for television and similar media, because its effective price, as perceived by consumers, would be much higher. Query what people would have done with their extra 20 − 30 hours a week over the last 40 years or so if they hadn’t spent all of it consuming mindless entertainment.
Also, without advertising, there would be far less demand for useless products, because their effective benefits, as perceived by consumers, would be much lower. A few corporations that completely failed to make useful products would have gone out of business, and most of the others would have learned to imitate the few corporations that already were making useful products. Query whether (a) having most companies make useful products and (b) having most workers be employed by companies that make useful products might be worth more than having Google.
If there were no free television, people would still have a lot of low-intensity timekillers available—gossip, unambitious games, drinking.
If they had to pay for television, they might have been so accustomed to paying for content that they’d have subscribed to google.
The more interesting question is how different would people need to be for advertising to not be worth doing. I think it would take people being much clearer about their motivations. I’m pretty sure that would have major implications, but I’m not sure what they’d be.
There are people who try to raise their kids to be advertising-proof, but I haven’t heard anything about the long term effects.
Without advertising, there would be far less demand for television and similar media, because its effective price, as perceived by consumers, would be much higher. Query what people would have done with their extra 20 − 30 hours a week over the last 40 years or so if they hadn’t spent all of it consuming mindless entertainment.
Also, without advertising, there would be far less demand for useless products, because their effective benefits, as perceived by consumers, would be much lower. A few corporations that completely failed to make useful products would have gone out of business, and most of the others would have learned to imitate the few corporations that already were making useful products. Query whether (a) having most companies make useful products and (b) having most workers be employed by companies that make useful products might be worth more than having Google.
If there were no free television, people would still have a lot of low-intensity timekillers available—gossip, unambitious games, drinking.
If they had to pay for television, they might have been so accustomed to paying for content that they’d have subscribed to google.
The more interesting question is how different would people need to be for advertising to not be worth doing. I think it would take people being much clearer about their motivations. I’m pretty sure that would have major implications, but I’m not sure what they’d be.
There are people who try to raise their kids to be advertising-proof, but I haven’t heard anything about the long term effects.
I make an effort to do this with my kids. It will be interesting to see how it effects things as they get older.