Mozilla Debuts Content Blocker For iOS

What Happened
On Tuesday, Mozilla launched an iOS content blocker named Focus by Firefox, promising to block out all tracking codes on mobile webpages. It will most certainly wipe out the ads as well, given that most online ads today have some sort of tracking code built in.

What Brands Need To Do
Following Apple’s decision to allow ad-blocking extensions in iOS 9, a handful of ad-blocking apps have been making waves among mobile users. While it is still debatable how much damage it will do to online publishers and advertisers, there is no denying that today’s consumers are becoming increasingly aware that they are being tracked, and that personal data holds value to advertisers. Therefore, publishers and ad tech providers will have to figure out new ways to acquire the audience data they need for retargeting and analytics. For one, offering consumers added value to incentivize them to volunteer their personal information and data is a good way to bypass the rising trend of ad avoidance.


Source: VentureBeat

Mozilla’s Cookie Policy Divides Publishers

Mozilla’s decision to not store third-party cookies by default has divided online publishers. Many publishers that have embraced cookie-based targeting available through ad exchanges will suffer as a result of the new policy. On the other hand, the premium publishers that offer direct ad sales will be able to value their content more highly without programmatic buying available for many Firefox users. It will be interesting to see if any other browsers follow suit with Mozilla.

Twitter Announces FirefoxOS App

Fresh off its debut at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Mozilla’s mobile FirefoxOS now has perhaps its biggest early adopter: Twitter. Engineer Manuel Deschamps says Twitter for FirefoxOS will be available in the app store from the first day the devices begin to ship. The app mirrors the layout on other mobile operating systems, with the same Home, Connect, Discover, and me tabs. It will also support Firefox’s unique Web Activities feature, which will allow users to tweet a photo from any app that also suports Web Activities, which includes the built-in photos app.