Criteria for Inclusion on the 🚫 Shopping List
Quick Summary: We identify companies whose advertising strategies intentionally compromise user autonomy or capture attention through manipulative design. A company qualifies for inclusion if its ads meet any of the following criteria:
Require 5 to 30 seconds of viewing before a skip option becomes available.
Begin playing automatically as soon as a page loads.
Promotional material disguised as legitimate content, e.g., fake Reddit posts.
Require user action before continuing.
Interrupt or block the content you're trying to view.
Appear even when users pay for a subscription.
Cannot be bypassed and must be watched in full.
Have no place in a civilized society, e.g., the Mitsubishi freestyle rap commercial.
Sometimes you just don't appreciate encountering an ad at a particular time.
Companies have more than enough resources—and more than enough creativity—to market their products without resorting to tactics that exploit, manipulate, or coerce users. Exposing these practices empowers consumers to reclaim control of their attention.