Popped my iAd cherry

Sometimes, I feel bad for the New York Times so I give them a pity throw. I mean, everyday they give me quality content, delivered fairly quickly to my iPhone. In return, I don't give them bitches a damn thing.

But every now and then, when the mood hits me, and I got time, I'll click on an ad. For reasons I'm not sure of, most of the ads in the New York Times stories, at least on their iPhone app, are for their Real Estate or Movies section. Which I'm sure isn't bringing in any extra cash. I click anyway. Makes em feel good.

Today, however, I noticed a bright, colorful strip at the bottom of the screen. And at the bottom right of that strip were the words, in tiny print, iAd ad.

Now, Apple being Apple, I actually know what this means. They've taught me just like you. It means this is one of those new-fangled, glossy, very expensive, MadMen-type ads, only re-engineered for the social, mobile 21st century experience.

So I clicked on it.

Nothing.

Clicked again.

Nothing.

Fuck it. Next story (apparently, there was a big rally in Washington, DC this weekend).

A different strip appears this time, from the NFL (or DirectTV, or both). I click on this and...the ad begins. Absolutely nothing special, nothing new, not terribly interesting. It's a sort of fake contest slash trivia competition to judge just how much of a 'true' fan I am of my 'favorite' football team.

Yawn.

It's hard to write much more about this because there was just so little content there that I'm pretty much out of things to say. Normally, I would have instantly migrated away from this ad/contest but as this was my very first iAd, I stayed with it, answering all the questions. Video? Music? Slick graphics? Not, really. Think of a nicely done ad-quiz you might discover on your Facebook page. Interactivity? If my responses to stock poll questions can be considered interactive, then, yes.  Perhaps I need to be a big-time football fan cum Foursquare mayor to appreciate this whole effort.

The only real surprise I had was that the ad did not seem to be very responsive. Literally. I mean, it's iPhone. It's iAd. I would select my answer, press it, and nothing.Touch again, then it would finally move to the second question. This happened repeatedly.

The smartphone is the computer. It is becoming the access point -- for everything. Thus, there is a very big potential market for big brand ads on big brand content. Instead of bolting out of the starting gate, however, iAd, is being called back for a false start.

At least the Times made a buck.