It was not done quietly at all. The browser also makes a huge deal about what these new tiles are and what information is exchanged. Which is something along the lines of "what percentage of all tiles clicked where ads"<p>The browser downloads all ads and decides LOCALLY which ads or suggestions to display - that is, it is done privately.<p>This advertisement is way more private and transparent than Mozillas normal third party ads programme, through google/yahoo search.
Is this the same as "Suggested Sites"? If so, you just click the gear in the top right on the new tab page and uncheck "Include suggested sites". Pretty simple to disable, at least on the latest beta and dev editions.<p>Another tempest in a teapot like when they integrated Pocket (right click > remove from toolbar takes 2 seconds)?