You may not know of a tree cutting service until you look there.
You may not know where to get a car part until you look there.
Having ads riddled throughout the internet is one thing, but having a directory where ads are supposed to be is another.
Yes billboards are annoying, that doesn't make classifieds equal.
(oh and you could just pay $3/mo or not use the service if you have no use for classifieds)
Oh right. They are a negative user experience and bring revenue in without providing any value (possibly negative value) to the user.
Nothing groundbreaking here, but lets not pretend this is anything but a money grab.
They can be a negative or positive depending on the ad and when/where you see it
Some people love to see new products and ads show those.
Then again I used to subscribe to tech magazines back in the day, and you can think of the articles and reviews as well thought out and curated ads. (At least the good magazines).
(Just wait until you become a small business owner and get to experience the advertising landscape from the other side.)
When I open youtube and click on the chainsaw sharpening tutorial video, i wasnt to see that video, not 6 ads for something i didn't search for and don't need.
That is to be expected. You might not need it but someone thought enough viewers would to make it profitable