Has anyone else gotten the 'Turning Red' ad after Firefox update?

Yes, and we're still fuming about it.

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30608022 ("Why am I seeing this adorable [sic] red panda?", 44 comments)

The direct, targeted fix is to disable the "what's new" page after updates:

    (in about:config)
    browser.startup.homepage_override.mstone = "ignore"

- "If browser.startup.homepage_override.mstone is set to "ignore", the browser's homepage will not be overridden after updates."

https://kb.mozillazine.org/Startup.homepage_override_url

The substantive parts of update release notes are still accessible here -- no ads here, so far:

https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/releases/

Honestly, who cares?

Unlike other ads, it's not invading my privacy and it's not really in my way.

They're not tracking me or selling my data or doing anything creepy.

Firefox continues to be the ONLY major browser run by a non-profit, and the ONLY major browser not a shim over chromium. It's still a great product.

If this is what they have to do to keep the lights on, then cool, whatever. How many of y'all who use Firefox donate or buy their VPN anyways.

There is no legally required disclosure anywhere about this being a paid endorsement, so we'll have to imagine that Mozilla engineers have spent their time on working to promote a Disney movie just because it's cool and it is available on Disney+.

https://web.archive.org/web/20220308222503/https://www.mozil...

Is it any worse than opening Firefox and seeing sponsored content from Pocket about how you should totally read this super organic blog post about meal kit subscription boxes?

IMO this is one the least offensive ways for Firefox to get revenue.

Mozilla employs, what, over 700 people to constantly maintain a Browser that is not financed through ad-tech and tracking (Google) or skimming developer revenue (Apple). Having a tab open with a Disney collaboration, that includes some colorful themes, every couple months seems fair to me.

I mean this does not interfere with your day to day browsing, there is no ad-tracking and the partnering with Disney does not create a conflict of interest in terms of Firefox's privacy features.

To be clear, this is not my favorite thing in the world and I agree, these campaigns should not happen monthly, but I'm okay with it for the reasons above :)

I find it weird that Mozilla would run ads for Disney+, a DRM infested site that gives Firefox users an intentionally subpar experience.

Well it is a red panda, i.e. a firefox. In fact, "Turning Red" could be seen as a metaphor for switching from Chrome to Firefox (in addition to, uhhh, the advent of menstruation).

Maybe if they had managed to sneak some product placement for Firefox into the movie it would balance things out and make it seem better.

In all seriousness, I don't like it either, but I wish the question wasn't so unnecessarily hostile ("Disney shit") toward a Pixar movie that I and my young daughter found quite delightful. That kinda makes me want to defend Mozilla.

This may have been more useful as a poll https://news.ycombinator.com/newpoll

As a FF desktop user, I honestly have not seen any full page ads for Turning Red. Haven't noticed full page ads for anything (yet) to be honest.

Winifred Mitchell Baker earns over 3 million dollars per year as CEO of Mozilla.

How many ads do they have to sell to earn only her salary. It’s mindboggling [1]. And she thinks she is „underpaid“.

Browser share down to 3.45% and they only live off their Google Money for the default search engine. If that drys up ...

[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitchell_Baker

Yep. What's the best fork? (Not Brave - didn't like it)

I didn't get any such ad. But I've have my homepage set to `about:blank` for a decade now.

> Every once in a while, something comes along that we can totally get behind.

Like DRM’d media.

Can someone explain why so many are infuriated by a single ad?

We need to move away from HTML. It's a fully captured spec that's continuously bent towards the needs of its ad-supported patron. We don't need an alternative browser, we need an alternative interaction platform, built from the ground up for extreme resistance to third-party advertising, interactive experiences with a sensible layout model unencumbered by decades of cruft, with full support for end-user introspection and alteration from day 1.

I did but didn't know what it's about so I closed the tab.

For those like me not familiar with this area of popular culture, and thus not heard of Turning Red, I wonder what you guessed it would be about upon reading the title. My thoughts were, in order: the Republican party, and then communism.

Firefox is basically adware at this point.

Download Brave.

Stop supporting Mozilla.

They are controlled opposition at best, and are completely ideologically possessed and controlled by politics at this point.

It’ll be whatever excrement paid Mozilla the most. And yes I received and resented it too.

How much did everyone using Firefox pay for the privilege of using their browser? It's ironic to me that there is so much anger over a communist China ad, while at the same time they want to benefit from the hard work of others for free. TANSTAAFL people.

Jesus. For real?

This is existentially disappointing.

I’m not sure what ethical profit looks like for FireFox, but as a 15-20-year user I’m finally out.

Here it is: https://web.archive.org/web/20220308222503/https://www.mozil...

Those values are insane. “Chinese culture love”!??? What the actual fuck.

This is infuriating.

Billionaires of SV please fund a Philanthropic project for a web browser. Like Jeff Bezos funding Washington Post, we desperately need a window into the internet. The days are numbered.