Blocking Firefox

There's a website that is trying to get sites to block the Firefox browser because of common plug-in that blocks ads. I use Firefox and I use AdBlock. It is great. I don't see any ads from doubleclick or google and all of those annoying animated ads are missing. Websites are much more readable without the ads. For me, one of the main reasons to use Firefox is get the AdBlock plug-in.

This creates a moral dilemma for me in that I make a good deal of money off of the same ads that AdBlock blocks. I have to turn it off in order to view my own sites to see if the ads are placed correctly.

I looks like a small consortium of website owners are using the browser header info to redirect Firefox users to a nasty page that explains why they were blocked. Their reasoning is that Firefox users are small in number and that they seldom buy anything anyway so it is best to block them. My question is why bother? If a Firefox user comes to a site he has a small but real chance of clicking on an ad. The cost of the bandwidth that the Firefox user is taking up is negligible and there is a possibility that he will make that 10 cent click and leave the site.

This is all very stupid. There are many better alternatives. AdBlock looks at off site urls to find images and javascript that comes from the ad companies. Commission Junction and Amazon have been experimenting with alternate ways to deliver ads including stealth websites. It might even be possible to block only browsers with AdBlock active. Ad delivery is taking up a good percentage of the bandwidth on websites. AdBlock cuts down on traffic and is generally a good thing. There needs to be a better method for delivering ads. Don't ban Firefox.

The bottom line is that blocking customers will only make customers unhappy. Blocking Firefox can only have a negative impact on sales. This has to be high on the list of stupid things that website can do. I hope someone hacks the site and replaces the home page with a picture of someone shooting himslef in the foot.