Some consumers are reacting negatively to pop-up window advertising, and Solid Oak Software Inc., publisher of the Internet content management app CYBERsitter, has added a filter for it. Some users have expressed “great annoyance” at pop-up advertising and have asked for filters to get rid of these, the company said. Auction site blockers also have been requested.
“We recently received an email from one customer who wanted to know if CYBERsitter could keep her husband from bidding over $25 for any item on eBay,” said Brian Milburn, president of Solid Oak. “It seems her husband had caught ‘auction fever’ and had been placing bids on items for amounts much more than their actual value.”
“We have already added the auction and pop-up ad filters, and will be introducing several other new categories over the summer,” Milburn said. Solid Oak is also preparing new filters for violent games, gambling, get-rich-quick schemes, weapons sales, personal ads and illegal music (MP3) sites. “It’s not just about pornography any more,” Milburn said.