This is slightly ironic, since Chrome exists solely so that Google can more effectively sell ads on every page you visit and track everything you do. I guess sites themselves aren’t technically part of the browser UI though.
No Chrome exists because Google didn't have a desktop OS at the time and they needed a platform. They developed things like V8 to make the browser a better platform for things like Maps.
And FF is an example of a browser that exists solely to sell ads. Mozilla has no other revenue stream. That's why they shove ads into your start screen.
At least Google has some non-ad revenue. Diverse, useful products. And I can trust that my data will only be used to match ads to me via algorithm, they're not going to sell my actual data, unlike most other players out there. And there's no ads in the Google products I pay for. MS puts ads in paid products, Samsung puts ads in paid products, most OEMs actually. Google keeps the ads on their webpages, they don't creep into things you pay for.
You praise them that everything works when you pay for Google, but that is every evil companys dream; make user hostile anti-patterns for free users and get them happy paying customers. The whole Youtube in these days is one the worst websites in the web, because of the systematic addition of user-hostile features for free users. Do you really want to support service like that?
What it comes to FF, there are no really other options to get some revenue from the browser. At least they are now trying with the VPN.
And? Thats far better than what most companies do. Credit card companies for example. There's a whole slew of 'traditional' companies that sell products and STILL sell your information.
I'd rather they have my data and allow me to use it for useful things (contextual search, maps, etc...) and use it to match me ads to make money versus companies like MS that would make me pay for their products, still shove ads in my face, then try to lock me into more products with a bunch of dark patterns, etc...
> The whole Youtube in these days is one the worst websites in the web, because of the systematic addition of user-hostile features for free users. Do you really want to support service like that?
Youtube enables creators in a way nothing before it did. It literally created a new type of publishing. As for ads on free Youtube, it's still far less than all the commercials that permeated cable TV since its inception.
Google is far less hostile to users and creators, free or paid, than cable companies and traditional media companies were for decades.
You reminded me of when they broke Microsoft Edge[0] by adding an empty (useless) div over the video element. IIRC that ruined its hardware acceleration, too.
[0]: https://www.theverge.com/2018/12/19/18148736/google-youtube-...