I’m a big tech scientist that’s done work as a consultant in the ad tech space. The data is so unreliable and garbage that it’s almost impossible to do anything with. The data comes from so many different sources, all of which may be suspect, you can’t tell what’s real and what’s fraud. And the deeper you dig, the more problems you find. I wouldn’t put money in it.
There is a lot of fear mongering and false analogies in this article.<p>1) For sure the state of online ads right now is overhyped. But to claim it's therefore all a bubble and you can't derive value from targeted instagram ads, or adwords doesn't withstand basic scrutiny.<p>2) The subprime mortgage crisis collapsed the way it did because money was owed that couldn't be paid back. This is not the case here, the money is simply spent with no ROI. One could argue this is a positive as it means there is money in the economy that could/will be put to better use.<p>If google and facebook shrink gradually in the next 10 years this is a net positive imo. But to claim it will be a mass exodus, and collapse the market overnight seems a bit stretched.