Why is ad blocking a problem for the FT?

Ad blocking is a problem facing all publishers but one which, research tells us, can be minimised by offering high-quality, relevant and targeted advertising, such as that on FT.com.

The Financial Times uses a mixture of advertising and subscription revenue to fund the news, comment and analysis that our readers depend on. To produce high quality journalism on a global scale, we need to maintain a healthy advertising business alongside subscriptions.

We know that advertising done well can form a helpful part of a consumer’s decision-making process. This is supported by both FT research and positive advertising campaign results. When we surveyed our readers about advertising on FT.com, 48% viewed it favourably or very favourably and only 6% viewed it unfavourably or very unfavourably.

We have now published a charter which transparently sets out to readers our advertising principles. This explicitly states what we think is an acceptable advertising offering for a premium, subscription publisher and makes commitments around the themes of trust, privacy and user experience. We see this as key to maintaining the relationship of trust which we have built with our readers over our 128 year history.