71 per cent of Brits associate ad with fake news, says Rakuten

71 per cent of UK consumers now associate ads with fake news, according to a report from Rakuten Marketing.

Thats considerably more than the other countries surveyed – 58 per cent of respondents in the US had the same association, and  just 54 per cent in France and Germany.

The report found that most consumers believe online advertising has failed to improve – or even got worse with time. 83 per cent said that online advertising interrupts their online experience.

If they have a bad experience with an ad, 45 per cent will abandon the site they are visiting, and 28 per cent will avoid the site altogether in future. Its not just bad news for publishers – 19 per cent will avoid brands they associate with poor advertising practices.

Its probably no surprise, then, that 32 per cent said they use an ad blocker, and 46 per cent proactively opt out of ads in other ways. Men are more likely to act against an ad than women, especially when it comes to ad blockers, which 

Men are more likely than women to take a proactive action to block an ad; they are 41 per cent more likely to use an ad blocker, 16 per cent more likely to opt out of ads, and 17 per cent more likely to clear their cookies. 
 
“Access to free content online is one of the most valuable propositions the internet offers, but the advertising that funds it needs to get better,” said Rakuten Marketing CEO Tony Zito. “At Rakuten Marketing, all of the investments we make are towards better understanding the advertising that meaningfully influences consumers, so we can improve overall performance, and solve this problem.”

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