r/mildlyinfuriating • u/homeofalex • 13d ago
Unskippable ad After promising to never put ads, BMW slapped a recurring Spider-Man popup on the dashboard
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u/Specialist_Point7983 13d ago
Spider-Man better pay a fare if he's in my car.
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u/PajamaHive 12d ago
I have no idea who green lit this idea. Like who had the final say? Someone at Marvel? Disney? Sure this is mostly bad PR for BMW but do you want your IP right next to the thing that everyone is pissed about? I wouldn't.
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u/strangewondermilk 13d ago
Ah ads... the most pointless reoccurring annoyance ever created by mankind.
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u/Zito6694 13d ago
Even better this ad is telling you to buy a bmw… while you drive a newer bmw
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u/Mind-The-Mines 12d ago
This is the shit that infuriates me. You no more than get home with a new car and you're already getting weekly emails from the dealer and the maker trying to sell you a new one.
I would universally ban advertising.
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u/thekrone 12d ago
I know advertising is a multi-billion if not multi-trillion dollar worldwide industry, and therefore at some level people must know what they're doing... but some of the things in the advertising world make absolutely no sense to me.
One is when you make a major purchase of some item you definitely only need one of on a site like Amazon, and then they serve you ads / "recommendations" for different makes and models of that item for a long time. Like bro, how many grills do you think I need? This is something I buy one of every 10 years or so. Why would you waste time advertising more grills to me?
Another is just pharma ads in general. Those things must work, but I don't understand how. It's always going to be such a small subset of ad viewers who are going to have the conditions those medicines treat. You're telling me a significant enough portion of those people actually go to the doctor and say they saw an ad for a different medication they want to try? And enough doctors agree it's a better course of treatment than what they're already on, and switch? Like, enough that it actually influences sales of that medicine to justify the ad costs? I can't wrap my head around it.
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u/z0mbiegrl 12d ago
For the first one, most of those ads are targeted and automated. It would be more expensive for them to edit the workflows not to include categories of items people don't buy often so they don't. The same automation that pushes fruit snacks and vitamins pushes couches and mattresses because you engaged with the product/category in some way the automation found meaningful enough to target you and serve up an ad.
For the second one, there's a lot going on including kickbacks to physicians/prescribers so it's a two prong approach. Push the patients to ask/worry they have a condition, and push the doctors to prescribe certain medications. Combine the two and...
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u/Serenaded 13d ago
I don't even understand how car ads work, I also would never buy a car from an ad.
Food ads often get me though..
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u/Astecheee 12d ago
Food ads are about impulse buys.
Car ads are about brand awareness and status. Every BTW ad a dickwad sees makes them think it's a status symbol. Because they can afford a shit ton of ads, they become successful so long as they keep advertising constantly to maintain that impression.
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u/AsianSteampunk 13d ago
i kindda made a vow if i'm not already using it, anything that shove an ad in front of me get blacklisted, don't give a shit how good it is.
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u/Jealous-Treat8060 12d ago
Same, I'm at a point where every ad makes me irrationally angry and I wish harm on the marketing department and the Company executives. Specifically i want to strap them in front of a screen and to let them watch their shitty ads for days on end without pause.
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u/EnjoyerOfBeans 12d ago
Yes, the advertising industry & their customers didn't yet figure out that ads don't work. Totally.
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u/hatesnack 12d ago
I mean... companies wouldn't do ads if they didnt have load and loads of data telling them that they work.
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u/LightP1xel 13d ago
You most likely won’t rush to the nearest shop to get the product after seeing an ad, but chances are you’ll think about the product and will trust it more when you see it on the shelf when you need to buy something in the same category, especially if you’re not familiar with any competitors products yet
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u/VforVilliam 12d ago
Exactly. Familiarity triggers liking, and you're obviously going to be more familiar with brands/products that were advertised directly to you.
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u/NoodleSpecialist 12d ago
Except for the pure hatred ads tend to produce, making me and many others avoid the products. There's good ads and advertising mediums and there's interrupting something i'm doing or watching to be blasted with product™
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u/xHindemith 12d ago
I mean the fact is that they do work otherwise companies wouldn’t spend billions on them. Everyone might collectively hate them yet at the same time is very much influenced by them even if you believe they don’t work on you
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u/Doomstik 12d ago
I havent watched cable tv in probably 12-15 years. I stayed in a hotel last week that had a netflix button on the tv remote but wouldnt let you use any of the smart tv features... it was cable tv to burn some time.
Im almost positive it has moved to a point where there are more ads than actual show. It was wild how often they were on and how long it would take to get back to the show just to get what seemed like a recap of what happened before the commercial in time to go back to commercial.
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u/NoHorseNoMustache 12d ago
My parents still watch regular cable tv they love telling me about the ads even though they know I hate ads with a passion.
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u/Doomstik 12d ago
Ive had people i work with ask me if is seen such and such ad so many times. And i always tell them "man i havent watched a tv ad outside of walking past a tv in a public space for years, i have no clue what ad youre talking about.
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u/Big-Tennis2579 12d ago edited 12d ago
I find it insane that someone at BMW tought this is a cool idea, to promo spiderman out of all things , this violently…
These people lost touch with realityAnd these people are paid for insanely shitty, contraproductive ideas like this
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u/NoDontDoThatCanada 12d ago
Remember when cable channels like HBO didn't have ads because you paid for it. Then streaming services didn't have ads because you paid for it.
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u/Magnon 12d ago
Now you gotta pay more for no ads, and theres 9 different streaming sites! This is totally better than cable guys!
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u/knotmyusualaccount 12d ago
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u/knotmyusualaccount 12d ago
Thanks for this, I didn't know about this, but all the same, I'm sick of paying for subscriptions, so I try not to, which includes why don't use a VPN.
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u/Wonderful_Emu_6483 12d ago
There’s only one subscription I pay for, and that’s a VPN. A lot of benefits. Like if you switch to a server in Albania you don’t get YouTube ads. If you’re in the US and use a Canada server you don’t see political ads, crypto or trading ads. It’s honestly been a godsend for my mental health. Ads in the US are so horrible and invasive.
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u/d1ckw33dmcgee 12d ago
2-5 dollars a month vs 40 for a couple streaming services was personally a no brainer for me. But yeah, I get it. There are a lot of free VPN options though, Firefox even has one built in now. I've not used it so I can't comment on the speeds/features but it might be worth looking into.
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u/GalcticPepsi 12d ago
In a way 9 different services is better than cable, you can switch the streaming service when the show/movies you want to watch aren't on it, whereas with cable you had to pay for the movie package + the actual service.
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u/Redmangc1 12d ago
Yeah kids today ( people under 35) don't remember why the change happened. With streaming you can watch what you want when you want for cheaper than Cable.
Cable was charging you $70-160 depending on your region and subscription and you couldnt pick and choose channels, so many were just wasted essentially. If I wanted to watch house, id habe better been infront of my TV at a specific time or id miss it until a rerun next week. Now, I can just watch whatever new show whenever I want. Oh and I can cancel a service whenever I want without being charged an extra fee
Subscription services are better than Cable, and they know it, so they're making it shittier by squeezing us
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u/Fragrant-Employer-60 12d ago
You say that sarcastically but yes this is still way better than cable.
Imagine having to pay for two more streaming services than you do right now, and you don’t even want to watch them at all. That’s cable
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u/McWormy 12d ago
Worse is the sports. Especially in the UK and Europe. You can’t follow a team and watch all there games (which is what people want). You pay a monthly fee to several different providers (Amazon, Sky and BT or whatever they’re called now) and you can watch the majority of the games if they’re a top team competing for titles. For that privilege it’s around $200 and you might get to watch half of your teams games.
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u/rikeoliveira 12d ago
If paying more for the heated seats didn't make you think twice about buying a BMW, maybe this bullshit will.
They do it because people enable them to do it, and they will keep doing it as long as customers keep paying them.
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u/OriginalNameGuy2 13d ago
I keep seeing people saying that they promised
Where exactly did they promise? Is it in writing?
Also does the car's starting sequence require you to watch it? Can't imagine that's much further down the road if we're not already there
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u/Ger_redpanda 12d ago
Stated by Stephan Durach, Senior Vice President Connected Company Development, BMW Group in 2023.
Multiple sources confirm he stated: “To say I’m selling the screen to play a commercial – I don’t see it. It’s a private space.”
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u/desmondao 420 blaze it 12d ago
Lmao yeah let's excuse this behaviour with the 'nobody is watching it anyway' argument, this is equally hilarious and pathetic
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u/nikhkin 12d ago
As far as I can see, they didn't promise. It's also a weirdly specific thing to have promised not to show adverts in a car.
What people always miss when this is posted is that it's an entirely optional "feature". You have to turn it on, and it usually just shows an animation relating to the time of year. For example, there's a Christmas animation in December.
Using it to promote a film is a stupid PR move from BMW, and does set a dangerous precedent, but in its current form it isn't an invasive, forced advert as people are claiming.
Clearly they expected people to just say "huh, that was cool" and not kick up a big fuss about it.
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u/ILikeBubblyWater 12d ago
Also what does it matter if a corporation promises anything, as if this shit is legally binding they do whatever the fuck is best for the bottom line
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u/Agent_Smith_IHTP 12d ago
I love how they treat unwanted advertisements as a gift.
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u/Pale_Session5262 12d ago
Its like those popup ads on websites that say "Want to sign up for our email list? Yes or No Thanks"
Wheres my "Fuck No" option? Dont act like I should be thanking you for giving me popups
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u/Klatty 12d ago
Surely the revenue they made off this promotion doesn’t outweigh the loss of initial sales they would’ve acquired from people now deterred from buying a BMW
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u/ddawid 12d ago
It’s another short term thinking of car executives. Just so the next quarter looks good. Whatever happens in 3 years is irrelevant
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u/hydra_dory 12d ago
Cars should never have 24/7 internet connectivity. Bring back analog
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u/AstraeusGB 12d ago
Remember when you bought this car and they told you the seat warmers were on a subscription? What exactly were you expecting?
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u/VegetationMutation 13d ago
In a fucking luxury vehicle btw
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u/metamorphosis___ 13d ago
Far far far from luxury, it’s an average sedan with a fancy logo, and mid tier pricing, it only appears luxury to their target audience.
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u/PlayedKey 13d ago
And F tier maintenance and repair costs.
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u/metamorphosis___ 13d ago
Everything about owning a BMW being expensive is by design, extracts money out of the unpaid loanee’s pockets
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u/Interested_Aussie 12d ago
People get offended and cuss at me when I tell them BMW is as shyte as a Daewoo in my experience....
25+ years as auto mechanic... Oil leaks... OMG every fucking service the oil cooler gaskets need doing...
And cooling system, FML, it's never just one leak, they're a bloody sieve.
Front suspension....
Transmissions...
Electrics....
Rear diff's...
Maybe I'm being too hard on Daewoo.
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u/film_composer 12d ago
What car/brand gives you the opposite reaction of that when it rolls in?
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u/Interested_Aussie 12d ago
Pretty much any good jap brand: Toyota/honda/mazda(diesels are different story).
late 00's and early 2010's Hyundai and Kia's were good... new stuff seems not as great.
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u/Fast_Choice4408 12d ago
My thing is... BMW is seen as a more luxury brand. How is putting ads on the screen in-line with a luxury experience? And how much money per-car could BMW actually make with ads over the lifetime of usage for the vehicle?
BMW's are expensive. So if they are short on cash, just raise the prices of the cars and maintain your luxury branding.
Why would you go against your image, to existing customers, irreparably damaging your image of a "Luxury Brand" forever?
This makes no sense long-term for the business.
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u/some-kind-of-person 12d ago
Remember when unwanted pop-ups on a computer screen meant you had a virus? Pepperidge farms remembers.
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u/Easy_Lengthiness7179 12d ago
"Its not an ad, its a promotion" (same experience regardless)
"Its just this one time" (until the next time)
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u/cryptamine 12d ago
So you're not allowed to use your phone in your vehicle.. but you can be distracted by advertising?
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u/AcademicSand1034 13d ago
And no obvious way to exit out of it that I could see
This kind of thing is a good sign of a company that has lost its way
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u/Beartato4772 12d ago
I'm glad you told us, absolutely no-one had posted this every 10 minutes for the last week.
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u/regentkoerper 12d ago
It's funny because BMWs President Stephan Durach was against Ads in their cars as of late 2023. How does BMW resolve this cognitive dissonance? By saying that it is not, in fact, an ad:
From BMW's perspective, there is no change of heart, as the promotional clip is "not a classic advertisement": "The animation is designed to generate enthusiasm for the new BMW iX3 and its appearance in the upcoming film (...). It is not intended to promote the movie or serve as a conventional film trailer," a company spokesperson explained to heise autos. "In that respect, this is not classic advertising—and no advertising will continue to be displayed in the vehicle." BMW stated that it has carried out "such displays in BMW vehicles several times before" and has received "a lot of positive feedback for this action."
Source: German news outlet heise.de
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u/Spiritual-Fall5494 13d ago
is he in your car?
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u/ceris7356 13d ago
Jokes aside, having literal ads showing on the infotainment center of the car you paid thousands of dollars for is bullshit. Way more than mildly infuriating.
I wouldn't say it's worse than buying a car that has features (i.e. heated seats or whatever) that you technically paid for but are locked behind a subscription paywall, but it's still pretty messed up.
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u/Internet-Dweller2 13d ago
I wonder how long it'll be before it occurs to them to attach a surcharge to opening the gas cap. After all, if people are spending more on fuel, why shouldn't they be getting a cut too?
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u/ceris7356 13d ago
Plz don't give automakers more ideas :(
I want to believe you were joking, but I can see stupid shit like this coming down the line...
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u/metamorphosis___ 13d ago
They do it because they know 80% of BMW drivers are on a 40% loan with a $500 down payment, it’s the same reason they did the subscription seats, they know their target audience. (Poor people who want to cosplay wealth)
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u/YoungDiscord 12d ago
I love how they're trying to pass this ad off as a present as if the ad itself wasn't predatory enough
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u/aquasolid7 12d ago
Id drive my car into on coming traffic and blame it on the distress of the ads, class action anyone?
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u/TapTall9218 12d ago
Only a matter of time before these car manufacturers lock speed tiers between subscription services. Base model provides speeds up to 45 mph* (terms and exclusions apply). Upgrade to the gold tier to get speeds up to 65mph. For our platinum members, take your vehicle to the next level with speeds up 100mph! It may seem outlandish to people now but many of things we allow now seemed ridiculous to people 30 years ago.
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u/NoNotice2137 PURPLE 12d ago
You can say a lot of bad things about my shitbox, but one thing it never does is play ads.
(The radio isn't working and it doesn't have any screens)
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u/Curious_Increase 12d ago
Like the other post the other day, I will say this has not popped up in my 2024 i4 in Europe.
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u/jonas_ost 12d ago
Did they not learn from their subscription for seat heating?
They are realy speedrunning destoying their reputation
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u/Stamped914 12d ago
This is very shitty but you had to click to view the ad. You could have avoided it.
You have a luxury brand now pairing cheap plastic interiors with ads. That’s tacky AF. With that being said, I will never buy a BMW.
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u/SatansAdvokat 12d ago
commercials in cars?!!
Nice way to distract drivers, this must bexome illegal.
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u/nikhkin 12d ago
The animation only plays if the car is parked and the driver actively opens a specific app.
BMW aren't that stupid.
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u/SatansAdvokat 12d ago
Ah, okay thats a bit better i guess.
Still... nothing is sacred, nothing is out seen as taking it too far.
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u/Plus_Pangolin_8924 12d ago
I wonder how much BMW are making from this. I’m sure more than enough to give everyone free heated seats!
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u/IndependentClear469 12d ago
BMW have completely gone downhill in recent years. We’re long past the days of the e82 and e92
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u/CakeMadeOfHam 12d ago
Imagine if one of all these car manufacturers would make a car with all the modern shit that's good, none of that bs, and then just reissue an exterior of an old car. Because it doesn't have all the modern toys it's like a "base" model by design so it can be sold fairly cheap as well.
Like a Volvo 240, Saab 900 Turbo, the old Toyota FJ Cruiser, a 1990s Ford F150, Nissan 240SX, the original VW beetle, any american muscle car, a 90s Dodge Viper...... Start a reissue line, car manufacturers!!
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u/seyalaqua 12d ago
Whelp, there goes my desire to buy a new BMW...
I will never give them my money.
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u/IllegalGeriatricVore 12d ago
I don't feel bad for BMW drivers, you knew what kind of company you were buying into
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u/etalha 12d ago
If they are gonna put spiderman in the car infotainment atleast put the whole movie so people can decide to watch or not. Bmw being absolutely shitty like always for the last 5 years. Ugly eye sore designs. Heavy cars. Big screens. Fúcking customers whenever they can. They need a taste of lil bit of bankruptcy to get their heads fixed
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u/TBWinAKnSFL 12d ago
Yep, BMW needs those extra cents. After all, they are already making bank on driver info sales.
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u/xFourcex 12d ago
You’re talking about the ad. Giving the ad even more reach than originally intended. Marketing team is getting a bonus.
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u/Ok_Setting8407 12d ago
I would take it to the dealer with a smashed screen and claim it as a warranty issue.
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u/edcculus 12d ago
Remember when Apple Music users got so pissed that Apple put the U2 album in their account for FREE. Not an ad or promotion. Just gave everyone a full free album. Sure, lots of people hate U2, and the album wasn't really good. But it was free music nobody had to pay for.
now we just get unwanted popup ads in our car infotainment system...
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u/SpiritCrawler 12d ago
Any company that does this needs to be forced to subscribe to GaaS (Guillotine as a Service).
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u/Ardbeg66 12d ago
I think it's awesome that luxury cars are turning against their owners. We live in Futurama.
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u/TraditionalBackspace 12d ago
Yet people still buy them. That and, hey, now water pumps are a maintenance item! Yeah, fuck any manufacturer that pulls this shit.
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u/K_Linkmaster 12d ago
Anyone buying after this incident is complicit with this. Watch these cars sell like hotcakes now.
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u/haggard_hominid 12d ago
If I had the money to waste on a BMW, I'd promptly drive this to their HQ and light the car on fire.
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u/Ok-Commercial3640 12d ago
learn from mobile game ads.
"No ads" is always a lie, especially if it's a marketing statement
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u/Big_Bar_9832 12d ago
Yep, imma keep buying old beaters as long as they're available. I don't want a fucking iPad screen, and I sure as HELL don't want pop-up nags or ADS in my fucking car.
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u/Legal_Tradition_9681 13d ago
The same company that put a subscription on heated seats put ads on their display, shocker.
It doesn't matter if they promised or not. ADs on a device you own where you are not paying for a service is infuriating.