Microsoft is working on supporting ad block in its new Edge browser through third-party extensions, reports Reuters. This is in line with most other popular browsers like Firefox, Chrome or Safari. Browsers like Opera and Slimjet, provide their own in built ad blockers. As more browsers adopt ad blocking technologies, white listing websites which have ads that are non intrusive and do not ruin the browsing experience will become crucial. It is also necessary to give the power to whitelist websites to users rather than the ad blockers themselves. Already ad blockers are being likened to a cartel and publishers like Axel Springer are seeking court-ordered bans on them. It’s also worth noting that publications such as the Washington Post also forced users to disable ad blockers to access their content in the past. City AM, a London financial newspaper, has been blocking the text of stories on Firefox browsers with ad blocking enabled since October, as indicated by this Information Week report and Wired Magazine now requires users to disable ad blockers or buy a subscription. Court ruling favoured adblockers: Interestingly, a German regional court recently ruled adblockers to be legal. This was the fifth such case to be decided in favour of ad block maker AdBlock Plus, which is based in Germany. The court in Munich also ruled that the "Acceptable Ads initiative," a scheme that requires larger companies to pay for their ads to be whitelisted by Adblock Plus, is acceptable under German law. However, while ad…
