Whats with all the ads all of a sudden?

[twoheadlines]

Nothing is free.

The site wouldn't exist without advertising. Neither would Google.

I suspect Google would do very nicely without half of the advertising space they sell off to all of those businesses who have been convinced by sales hype suggesting their widget business can only boom through advertising on this or that website. All that BS about how quickly the number of "hits" or "clicks" will turn into mega profits for their business can be too easily believed.
Guess what! it is mostly Google that benefits from that advertising. Have you counted how much "unsolicited" junk mail is being pushed into your gmail Inbox lately? Gmail almost monopolises western email systems thanks to Google, whose "eye-watering' profits continue to grow and grow, and grow. In a relatively short space of time a Gmail account has simply become another advertising platform. A Google benefit service!
I don't have a problem with advertising per se. What I do have a problem with is advertising that has become so insidious, that the whole reason for visiting a particular website, or Gmail account, is absolutely ruined. Popular websites become the enemy of their own popularity when it is almost impossible to read or view something of interest because of advertising flicking across the middle of a window or obstructing parts of a screen to the point where functional actions to navigate become impeded.
I am more than happy to go to a site where the advertising is appropriate but is absolutely secondary to the main reason for the sites existence. That choice is fast becoming non-existent. And I doubt that all the Survey Monkey pledges to take notice of your views will do little more than count for nought.
In my opinion, this site, like many others, is losing too much of its original focus; especially when it is believed it could not exist without advertising.

Happy and safe flying ?

 

[Deleted member 94047]

While I understand the need for the site to generate revenue from ads, I am also begining to get tired of the ads. I don't mind unobstrusive ads; the header and footer ads are absolutely fine. But the ones that appear between posts are horrendous and are making browsing the site a painful experience. I have also noticed the site is becoming extremely slow and at times outright unresponsive on my phone and I suspect the ads have a lot to do with that. Please be sensible in the way you serve ads; it can be very counterproductive. I have never considered installing an ad blocker on my phone browser but it won't be long before I do if this keeps up. This site is one the two sites I visit multiple times a day; I would hate to deprive it of any means from which it can make a few cents from my visit. But if it comes at the cost of functionality, I will not hesitate to make that choice. Yes I could become a paying member, and I would if I could. But I can't.

 

[JAW]

Back (2016) when I flew Blade quads I paid $4.95 per month for R C Groups Blade 350 forum membership . That’s $59+ a year.
For those who can’t/won’t meet the $40 yearly tab, maybe there’s a way to do a monthly gig, say $4.50?

 

[dirkclod]

You can and believe it’s 5.00 a month. Info is in my signature
link. Premium Pilot Member Upgrades

 

[Julez]

Shame that this site allows a scam like the Drone product advert!

 

[Julez]

(That was DroneX Pro)

 

[pelagic_one]

We will spend a boatload of money every year for accessories, many of which may never come out of the bag, but we’ll complain about the option to pay for a MavicPilots Premium Pilots membership.

I opted to pay for the privilege of fewer ads. In exchange I have received advise to prevent me from crashing my drones, hurting other people, breaking any laws, looking stupid to fellow flyers, overusing RTH, causing interference to FPV guys, ruining my intelligent batteries and buying wrong or unnecessary accessories.

To me, the premium membership is worth more than a combination of the latest 3D-printed prop holders, leg extensions, ND filter sets, motor covers, vehicle undercoating...or whatever. I don’t mind paying for this valuable information, even when I know people have the option not to pay. I hate ads, too.

It’s also worth the cost of admission when @sar104 authoritatively shifts the blame from DJI back to a newbie pilot.