- iOS users are seeing ‘ads’ for other Apple products on their iPhones
- The banners promote services like iCloud+, Apple Music and AppleCare+
- The messages often can’t be dismissed and stick around for weeks
If you were to ask iOS users how they felt about Apple’s decision to insert ads into Apple Maps, it would quickly become obvious that it was not a popular move. So when iPhone fans discovered that Apple has been inserting prompts for its own products into iOS, the reaction was predictably swift and furious.
The ‘ads’ in question appear in the Settings app in iOS. They can be found near the top of the iPhone’s display and promote several products to the user, including paid-for iCloud+ storage, free trials for services like Apple Music and Apple TV, and the AppleCare+ extended warranty.
Infuriatingly for iOS users, the only way to disable these promos is to either let them expire — which in many cases could take weeks or even months, leaving a persistent notification badge on the Settings app in the meantime — or pay for the service being offered. There is not always a “dismiss” button to shoo them away for good, and when there is, some people have reported that it doesn’t seem to work.
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Many people have taken to social media to vent their frustrations with Apple’s actions. “I’m feeling like this is nearly on-par with the ens***ification that Microsoft introduced with Start menu ads,” said one aggravated user. “I wish Apple would just stop that crap,” stated another. Many other people have taken to Reddit to express their exasperation, suggesting that the discontent is widespread.
Some of these ads and offers — such as the one for Apple Music — appear after you’ve bought a new Apple product. With the company launching the iPhone Duo and iPhone 18 Pro range recently, it’s perhaps unsurprising that we’re seeing a sudden influx of posts flush with irritation and indignation.
Apple’s services push
On the face of it, Apple’s decision to include promotions like this in its operating system might seem like a strange one. After all, Apple has long positioned itself as a premium company where the user experience is paramount. From that viewpoint, repeatedly attempting to prod customers towards even more of the company’s products might seem cheap, even distasteful. And when you’ve just shelled out a record fee for an iPhone after Apple’s painful price rises, that can just feel like nickel and diming.
But Apple has been putting increasing emphasis on its services in recent years, of which products like iCloud+, Apple Music, Apple TV and AppleCare+ are all a part. With limited room for growth in the smartphone market, the company is turning to areas where it thinks it can make more progress.
And unfortunately for users, that means more ads like this on their devices. While they are far from the most obnoxious ads around, the fact that many cannot be dismissed is clearly rubbing users the wrong way — as is the fact that the promos even exist at all in an Apple product.
There is also the possibility that at least some of these adverts are appearing due to a bug. The iCloud+ one in particular has drawn comments from users who are already subscribed to iCloud+ and thus, one would think, should not need to see any ads like this. Time will tell how that plays out and whether Apple fixes this ‘bug’ or leaves the ads in place. If the latter transpires, it would suggest that they are not appearing erroneously.
With Apple’s services push showing no signs of slowing down and further ads supposedly planned for the likes of the firm’s Visual Intelligence system, don’t expect Apple to have a change of heart any time soon.
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