Re:German court requires Google to stop ignoring customer em...
by marcus_holmes on Friday September 12, 2014 @07:47PM
(#8311081)
I tend to agree, but if governments make laws that insist that customers be supported, then there needs to be distinction made between customers who pay money and who could be reasonably expected to be supported, and users who get a service for free and cannot reasonably expect support.
Y'know, I'm starting to question this oft-repeated adage. If websites are demanding that I watch their ads (although Google so far doesn't and lets me adblock in peace), then I'm a customer. I'm paying with my attention for the website's service. I'm doing something I wouldn't otherwise do in exchange for a service.
So I say people watching Google's ads are as much their customers as the people paying Google to put up those ads. If Google sufficiently angers either group, they lose business.