On the verge of Twitter's IPO, a small German company known for its ad-blocking software proposed an unsolicited ultimatum for the company: Make better ads — or else end up on its blacklist.
The blog post earlier this month, by Cologne-based AdBlock maker Eyeo, began by empathizing with Twitter's need to make money via advertising. Then it switched gears: "Your users might not be too thrilled about what’s in store — and that will inevitably send that many more of them running to Adblock Plus."
See also: Welcome to an Internet Without Ads
As the company points out, some 200 million people have downloaded AdBlock's browser plug-in, which blocks advertising. "So why not work together? We would like to partner with you to engineer acceptable, non-intrusive advertising that would conform to our guidelines and make it to our whitelist," the post reads.
Twitter hasn't responded yet and the company could not be reached for comment. However, Eyeo revealed last week that some 777 companies have applied to be part of its "Acceptable Ads" program since it launched in 2011. Of that, 50% were rejected because their ads were not acceptable.
Among the applicants was Google, which disclosed earlier that it was an investor in AdBlock Plus, which allowed some "acceptable" Google ads to transcend the ad filter.
Though the tone of the post directed to Twitter is friendly in tone, it also arguably conveys a veiled threat: Play ball or risk losing your main source of revenues. An SEC filing this month revealed that Twitter posted $316.9 million in revenues last year, 85% of which came from advertising.
Till Faida, CEO of Eyeo, says that wasn't the intent.
"We didn't mean it as a threat in any way whatsoever," he says. "They would have been one in a long series of advertisers who are interested in using Acceptable Ads." Faida's official line is that by helping publishers like Twitter craft better ads, Eyeo will be helping the industry become more sustainable over the long haul.
However, that claim was undermined by the Oct. 4 post. The open letter to Twitter was Eyeo's first to such a company, which has not given the larger Facebook the same treatment. The timing and the focus on Twitter — which is not known for the type of heavily animated, intrusive ads that Eveo discourages — appears to be an attempt to capitalize on to the hype surrounding the company's impending IPO.
As Sean Blanchfield, CEO of PageFair, notes, Twitter is an odd target for Eyeo. For one thing, most people access Twitter through native and third-party apps, which contain ads that are inaccessible to AdBlock Plus. For another, sponsored tweets are "very native to the Twitter experience," Blanchfield says. "I'm not sure you can call [Twitter] out."
For his part, Faida says that many of Twitter's ads are unacceptable. He also points out that AdBlock Plus has an Android app that blocks in-app ads.
Yet Twitter isn't the only company that should be worried about ad blocking. Blanchfield says his research shows about 22% of web users are currently blocking ads. The growth of AdBlock has mirrored the rise of Chrome, he says. "A few years ago Chrome wasn't a factor. Now, it's 40% of the market."
Blanchfield adds that effects of such technology is already felt. He has already seen some publishers go out of business because of ad-blocking technology. That doesn't necessarily mean that Eyeo is a destructive force, he says.
"I think the AdBlock guys aren't trying to do anything evil here," Blanchfield says. "I think they're trying to do something good for the Internet. AdBlock is only popular because ads are getting so distracting that people are seeking alternatives."
Image: Getty/Gerard Julien