What is online advertising?

Ads are an important source of revenue for online content creators and service providers. You’ve probably noticed them before. They appear next to search engine results, on a variety of different social networking sites, and in general litter the information superhighway in a way not dissimilar to the way that billboards litter our literal superhighways. At best, ads are interesting if a bit annoying. At worst, they can cause several usability problems. But the decision of many online sites to offer free content and services has made them increasingly important to funding the internet.

Credits: Talking: Geoffrey Challen (Assistant Professor, Computer Science and Engineering, University at Buffalo). Producing: Greg Bunyea (Undergraduate, Computer Science and Engineering, University at Buffalo).