October 3rd, 2024

Improving online advertising through product and infrastructure

Mozilla is enhancing digital advertising by focusing on user privacy, employing cryptographic techniques, acquiring Anonym for a privacy-focused infrastructure, and prioritizing transparency and user engagement in its strategies.

Read original articleLink Icon
Improving online advertising through product and infrastructure

Mozilla is enhancing its role in digital advertising by focusing on product development and infrastructure improvements. The organization aims to create advertising solutions that respect user privacy while balancing commercial interests and public good. This initiative is driven by the belief that current online advertising practices compromise user data control. Mozilla plans to implement advanced cryptographic techniques in its products, such as Firefox, to ensure privacy while still enabling effective advertising. Additionally, the acquisition of Anonym will help build a privacy-preserving infrastructure for data sharing in the advertising industry, promoting a level playing field and reducing reliance on large companies. Mozilla acknowledges that its approach may not be universally accepted but emphasizes the importance of addressing the challenges of online advertising to foster a better internet. The organization is committed to transparency and user engagement as it develops these new strategies.

- Mozilla is increasing its involvement in digital advertising to improve user privacy.

- The organization plans to use advanced cryptographic techniques in its products.

- Anonym's acquisition aims to create a privacy-focused infrastructure for advertising.

- Mozilla acknowledges potential community resistance but believes in addressing advertising challenges.

- Transparency and user feedback are central to Mozilla's strategy moving forward.

Link Icon 3 comments
By @greyface- - 4 months
> We know that not everyone in our community will embrace our entrance into this market. [...] Advertising on our products will remain focused on respecting the privacy of the people who use them. Those are table stakes for us, fundamental qualities which will be our north star.

Privacy is great, but user choice and autonomy are just as important. This shift gives Mozilla the same incentive Google had to break ad blockers with something like MV3. I would like to see a commitment that there will be no hostility towards ad blocking going forward.

By @fnwbr - 4 months
That's it. I'm done with Mozilla...
By @amatecha - 4 months
"Mozilla is going to be more active in digital advertising" ... a couple paragraphs later, "Mozilla’s mission is to build a better internet."

I mean.. could you just like, focus on making a good web browser? Advertising is one of the things that has made the web crappier.