Do They Make Pop-Up Blockers For TV?

Published on January 27, 2006 By Rutabaga64 In Movies & TV & Books

I'm starting to feel like someone needs to create a pop-up blocker for our TVs. It was bad enough when channels starting using the station ID "bugs" in the lower right hand corners of our screens. Now it's gotten worse than that. Much, much worse.

What is it with stations lately, with their advertising that pops up in the corners and takes up at least a full quarter of the screen right in the middle of programs? There's nothing worse than watching something and being really into what you're watching, particularly if it's something incredibly dramatic and serious, then whammo! This big ol' advert pops up, publicizing the latest episode of the latest tacky whatever the station really, really wants you to watch next time it's on. It's incredibly annoying, and downright stupid. I don't know who invented that idea, but whoever it is, they ought to be flogged, drawn, quartered, and tarred and feathered for good measure.

Now, if someone really could invent a pop-up blocker for TV, they'd become rich, rich people.

Comments

Bunnahabhain

on Jan 28, 2006

Sorry, it's not possible. TV is push content. The internet is pull content. The best that you could hope to achieve would be to obliterate the pop-up ad. As for the "bugs" in the corner of the screen, it would be possible to write a program that would remove the image and replace it with an estimated image. The "bugs" tend to be subtle, so it shouldn't be too hard to figure out what should be behind the image.

Using the same technique, you might be able to extrapolate what would have been behind the pop-up images, but in all likelihood, you wouldn't be too successful.

If all that crap bothers you so much, you're better off not watching it on broadcast TV. Buy the DVD set when it comes out. If you can stand to be 6-12 months behind the times, it's the better way to go IMHO.

Rutabaga64

on Jan 28, 2006

I knew pop-up blockers weren't possible, but man, I wish they were. I also just don't understand why some of the people at the TV networks (and it isn't just the big ones, it's also cable channels...BBC America is a big offender) think that this kind of advertising is effective. As far as I'm concerned, it's nothing but annoying, and also disrespectful of the program that's currently on the screen.

It's just dumb, but I guess in some ways, it's also a reflection of society as it is nowadays...short attention spans and seemingly only the splashy MTV-type images can capture those short attention spans. Or so some people seem to think. Personally, I think it's one of the dumbest methods of advertising I've seen recently.

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