New Gmail For Android Coded For Advertisments?

Updated on

Users of Gmail on Android, perhaps unaware, have something that most users don’t possess: a Gmail app that is free of advertisements. Unfortunately for you, me, they (as I like to call them), this may be coming to its conclusion when the new Gmail app for Android is released. While Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) is suggesting that this newest iteration is simply for an aesthetic overhaul, and minor interface changes, there are news pieces and rumors that suggest that this is not the case.

New Gmail For Android Coded For Advertisments?

New Gmail app on Android

Unlike its web counterpart, an ad-free Android experience is coming to an end. This news comes according to Artem Russakovskii at Android Police. While essentially Greek to me, Mr. R is suggesting that the following lines are anything but innocuous.

<string name=”ad”>AD</string>
<string name=”ad_will_not_save”>Will not save ad as message</string>
<string name=”ad_will_save”>Will save ad as message</string>
<string name=”ad_dismissed”>Ad dismissed</string>

Once again, I have no idea what this means, but others are saying that this code will allow you to save an ad in your inbox. While I see very little in ads that warrant saving, this could actually prove helpful to some users, albeit at the expense of an ad-free environment.

It’s anyone’s guess what the ads will look like or whether they will show up at all. If they are anything like the “sponsored promotions” that are presently used in Gmail’s newly reorganized inbox, that shouldn’t bother those with any technical acumen, as they are easily disabled. You need only disable the “Promotions” section of the new inbox in “Settings.”

Google monetizing mobile apps

If you’re at all reasonable, you shouldn’t be terribly surprised that Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), who provides basic Gmail free of charge to all, would want to monetize its mobile apps. However, given the limited screen space that many users must manage, Google must walk the tightrope between money and the infuriating nature of overly intrusive advertising.

It’s a lot easier for users to forward their email to an ad free platform than it is for Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) to apologize and win former users back.

Leave a Comment