Sportswear and shoe maker Adidas has allegedly cancelled a hefty $US10 million iAd due to “control issues” that could not be resolved with Apple or its CEO, Steve Jobs.
Apple’s iAd platform is here, but the advertisements themselves are still few and far between. According to the Wall Street Journal, Apple’s desire to closely control the creation of the ads has slowed their arrival.
Could Apple be prepping an ad-supported version of OS X? A newly-unearthed patent shows that they’ve at least been toying with the idea.
Word comes from the Financial Times today that US regulators are planning an antitrust investigation into Apple’s iAd mobile advertising platform. At issue: the iAd terms and conditions that allow Apple to shut out Google entirely from its potent ecosystem.
At D8, Steve Jobs said that Apple’s move to block outside ad agencies from collecting user information was made to protect user privacy, not to box out the competition. He promised that Apple would allow other advertising networks to collect user statistics, effectively letting them compete with Apple’s own iAd.
After months of uncertainty amid FTC investigations, Google’s acquisition of AdMob is finally totally 100 per cent complete. Now, Google’s shiny ads and Apple’s shiny ads will compete for your eyeballs and you will try your best not to let them bother you too much. [Google Blog]
Make no mistake, iAds are the iPhone user’s worst enemy. If Buzz Lightyear were at the unveiling, he’d have rocket-punched Apple right in the face.
