Yet Another Very Innapropriate Ad

Fri May 06, 2005 3:03 am

O..M..G.

Yes, every 13-year old needs help finding the perfect(measurement) girl. [/sarcasm]

Last edited by tigerlily on Fri May 06, 2005 4:28 am, edited 1 time in total.

Fri May 06, 2005 3:58 am

Somone really needs to email Neo, preferably one with kids who play the site. It'll bring more of an impact, IMO.

Fri May 06, 2005 5:30 am

I sent them all the information they ask for about "inappropriate ads". I took my page source, a screenie, and sent it to them. Hopefully something will be done about that one sooner than later.

Fri May 06, 2005 2:42 pm

This is the one I was just about to post about. I just saw it my self about fifteen minutes ago and was honestly discusted by it.

This is a Child Based / Teen'ish Based Game. A GAME. Games do not have squished, false tanned "items". It's stupid. It's useless. I know there are adult players here, many here at PPT. But it's wrong. 100% Wrong.

Fri May 06, 2005 4:06 pm

I just got that one too. It must be rather common. My mother would freak if she ever saw that ad while I was playing. I wish they would screen the ads before putting them up; I would say that one violates the Terms and Conditions.

Fri May 06, 2005 4:53 pm

That's the thing - they're supposed to. And the ad vendors are also supposed to tailor ads to sites they place them on as well, so that they get two layers of clearance, especially on sites that are rated child-safe.

My guess is that someone on Neopets' end dropped the ball.

Fri May 06, 2005 4:59 pm

That's the same one Kelpie got! (She had it in her DA) Here's what she wrote about it:

It does. In neo's mad quest for money, they broke their own rules. I guess I'll ad that into my snail mail.

NANI! GET PROJECT PILLSBURY UP AND RUNNING! AND QUICK! US YOUNG'NS BEG YOU!

EDIT - mailto:adreport@support.neopets.com - e-mail. According to the Kelpie-San: Neopets doesn't pre-approve ads. They basically have an outside company that says "This is a block of ads that are geared towards adults, 18+." And Neopets says "Okay, we'll code them in." So no one previews the ads. The only ones they take notice of are the ones people complain about.

Fri May 06, 2005 5:27 pm

That's the sad part. Would it really take them that long for someone to check through a block of ads? Just take one quick LOOK before putting them on their site? I'm sure there's someone there that could do it.

I'm just losing my faith in Neopets. They seem to be getting worse everyday.

Sat May 07, 2005 12:11 am

I did make the full report on the ad (screen shot, page source, etc) ... and I actually got a response! (neato!) They are (obviously) getting rid of it.

Neopets emailed me! yay!

Message I got pasted below ...
-------

Hi,

Thank you for reporting this. This ad is in the process of being removed. It
may take a few hours for the removal request and update to reach all of the
servers in the advertiser's network. We appreciate your patience during this
time and apologize for the inconvenience.

Thank you,

XXXX [Name Removed]
The Neopets Team

Sat May 07, 2005 12:18 am

Glad to hear they're removing ads like that when you email them.

Sat May 07, 2005 12:20 am

Frankly, this DISGUSTS me.
They are posting links to dating sites, virsuses and other crud, and it's making me angry.
It's making me an-gry.
It's making me an-gry.
Sorry, I like saying that.
Anyhow, it DOES violate their terms and conditions, but half the ads don't show up for me now 'cause of meh beautiful adblock *huggles adblock*.
Still, it's frankly quite disgusting that people in grade 3 and the like are being exposed to these innappropriate ads. It's WRONG. Even if neo removes some of them, there are bound to be things that slip through, etc.

Sat May 07, 2005 2:40 am

Remember that one day alot of people stop playing neo trying to make a point about something?
Why don't people do that again, except not playing to get rid of bad ads.
And have like many petitions.
And get owners of neo-help sites to post on the front of their site.

Sat May 07, 2005 2:45 am

I've seen that ad outside of Neo and I thought it was gross and uncalled for. But the fact that now it's on Neopets is even more disgusting. Who knows what a kid could get themselves into with just one click of that ad and a little playing around on the site?

Also from my own experience...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/ ... therad.jpg
It says my hometown underneath the black boxes. I was pretty shocked to say the least when that popped up.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/ ... nnerad.jpg
If someone ever said anything about punching Bush on the boards, they'd be frozen in an instant.

Sat May 07, 2005 2:46 am

Thats a really great idea, but with all of the other neopet players, do you think they would notice us??

Sat May 07, 2005 4:14 am

Adam, it was just about a year ago that the Day of Action occurred. I think it was a great idea. And, I participated in it. I don't think it had any effect on Neopets, but it did make me feel like at least I tried to do something, rather than just sit back and complain about how bad the site was (at the time, that is--I really think that it has gotten a whole lot better since then--except for the ads).

And, on that day, I decided not only to stop playing Neopets, but to also write them a letter about the flaws with the site. Even if it never got read, I, at least, made the attempt to communicate. On that day, I also spent several hours doing internet research on Neopets to see if there were public "bad vibes" about Neopets. And, I found quite a few news articles and national organizations that gave a bad spin on Neopets. It was quite enlightening.

And, may I say that it was quite hard to quit playing on that day last year. If I recall correctly, it was a weekend, a half-price day, and everyone else in my family was playing Neopets.

And, it wasn't like I didn't like Neopets--I loved it then and still do--I did it then because I thought, at the time, that it was in great need of improvement. And, a lot of those improvements did occur in the past year. The whole suspension thing. The compensation for lost items when major glitches occurred. The feeling that the staff is being more understanding, attentive, considerate than they were previously.

But, I agree with those of you who are totally disgusted by the ads that seem to be "popping" out of their blouses. If I was a parent of a pre-teen or young teen boy and happened to pass by him playing on the computer while that ad was on, I would definitely have second thoughts about letting him play Neopets anymore.

Neopets really needs to realize that if they don't tighten their belt on their sexually-explicit ads, they are going to lose the audience that they are so desperately trying to entice with their TCG cards, real life plushies, real life toys, and Disney immersive advertising. They probably won't lose the adults with those ads. But they might lose the younger ones. I know of many adults with adult accounts, who let their little kids play a bit of Neopets with them while they are sitting at the computer. Those parents might have a bit of a fit if they see dating ads while playing a game with their kid on their lap.

This is a family-friendly site. I don't want to see ads for birth control, internet dating, which celeb gets pregnant first or is the "hottest." Those ads are going to do Neo in. Why should a reputable company like the New York Times or the Wall Street Journal plunk down money to advertise when their ad is right after "Hotties Hotties Hotties XXX." Geez, we don't see that crap on TV, why should we be subjected to it on the internet? And on a site that is geared toward kids?

Like Shapu said, someone at Neopets has dropped the ball. Big time. And really needs to be fired because of it.