Uber recently launched New advertising section and in-app ads. Apparently, these ads do not stay within the app.
Instead, ads from other companies are sent as push notifications, much to the chagrin of some Uber users. Over the weekend, people took to Twitter to complain about notifications and engagement Screenshots of adsincluding one particularly popular from peloton sent by Uber. One primary complaint: Notifications are sent when users don’t interact with the app.
When Uber first announced its in-app ad “experiment,” the company did not mention potential intrusive effects.
Uber told TechCrunch that this “was a limited test and users can always manage their mobile notification settings under Privacy then Notifications in the app.”
The company did not respond in a timely manner to follow-up questions from TechCrunch, including how many users were included in the test, whether it tracks data on how many users turn off ad push notifications, how long the test is scheduled for and whether Uber will perform more effectively. Full notifications announcements in the future.
Uber’s in-app ads feature one brand for the entire trip. So-called “trip ads” allow brands to display different ads to the user at three points in the trip: while waiting for the car, during the ride and when arriving at the destination. Brands can “customize” ads to each user based on travel history and geographic destinations. It’s also not clear if Uber has used the same type of data for its push notification ads.
