Bloomberg reporting on Wired launching a subscription option for an ad free version of their site:
More than 1 in 5 people who visit Wired Magazine’s website use ad-blocking software. Starting in the next few weeks, the magazine will give those readers a choice: stop blocking ads, pay to look at a version of the site that is unsullied by advertisements, or go away. It’s the kind of move that was widely predicted last fall after Apple allowed ad-blocking in the new version of its mobile software, but most publishers have shied away from it so far.
Wired plans to charge $3.99 for four weeks of ad-free access to its website. In many places where ads appear, the site will simply feature more articles, said Mark McClusky, the magazine’s head of product and business development. The portion of his readership that uses ad blockers are likely to be receptive to a discussion about their responsibility to support the businesses they rely on for information online, McClusky said.
This feels like a challenge. How many people are going to try and hack around what ever defenses Wired puts up against ad blockers? For some it will have way more to do with the thrill of the challenge than the $4 a month.
If Wired isn’t really careful with this it turn into a game spending way too much time defending against those looking to prove they can beat them. Never underestimate the free time of your opponent.