--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It wasn't that people wanted things for…" description: "\"It wasn't that people wanted things for free and asked for advertising to fund it - it's that these companies wanted to amass an audience whose \"eyebal..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/770/astra-taylor-9450_advertising_it-wasn-t-that-people-wanted-things-for_2752379.jpg" --- # It wasn't that people wanted things for free and asked for… ![“It wasn't that people wanted things for free and asked for advertising to fund it - it's that these companies wanted to amass an audience whose "eyeballs" they could sell, and they gave people things for free to do that. Free services and content has been foisted upon us because there wasn't the…” quote by Astra Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/770/astra-taylor-9450_advertising_it-wasn-t-that-people-wanted-things-for_2752379.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/770/astra-taylor-9450_advertising_it-wasn-t-that-people-wanted-things-for_2752379.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/770/astra-taylor-9450_advertising_it-wasn-t-that-people-wanted-things-for_2752379.jpg) > “It wasn't that people wanted things for free and asked for advertising to fund it - it's that these companies wanted to amass an audience whose "eyeballs" they could sell, and they gave people things for free to do that. Free services and content has been foisted upon us because there wasn't the will power to explore other options.” [Astra Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/astra-taylor/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Free services monetize audience attention, creating a trade‑off between accessibility and exploitation. **In simple terms:** Free services sell audience attention. Key Takeaway Consider alternatives to ad‑driven models. Themes digital economy attention economy free content Mood critical informed Type analytical political When to use this quote - choosing services - privacy settings - supporting creators Key Concepts advertising user data platform monetization Questions to Reflect On - What are ethical alternatives? - How to support creators directly? A Different Perspective Free models can erode privacy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Advertising](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advertising/) [Advertising Fund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advertising-fund-3108968/) [Asked Advertising](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asked-advertising-3108967/) [Audience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/audience/) [Company](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) [Eyeballs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eyeballs/) [Free Asked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-asked-3108969/) [Free Services](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-services-1062266/) [Fund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fund/) [Has beens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/has-beens/) [Marketing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marketing/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Sells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sells/) [Things Free](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-free-545410/) [Wanted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wanted/) [Will power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/will-power/) ## Related quotes > [It's very complicated. There's been this broader mechanism, an industry, which wants people to use free services, from the old days of advertising-supported papers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/astra-taylor/it-s-very-complicated-there-s-been-this-broader-mechanism-an-industry/) [Astra Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/astra-taylor/) > [I think, at the end of the day, Stockhouse will have free services supported by advertising, but we'll also have a number of subscription…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-berwick/i-think-at-the-end-of-the-day-stockhouse-will-have-free-services/) [Jeff Berwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-berwick/) > [Free services like Wikipedia I don't think benefit anyone - they don't benefit the professional because they're not paid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-keen/free-services-like-wikipedia-i-don-t-think-benefit-anyone-they-don-t/) [Andrew Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-keen/) > [I hate shopping. I mean, maybe not hate, but it's not on my list of things to do. If I have free time I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-jonas/i-hate-shopping-i-mean-maybe-not-hate-but-it-s-not-on-my-list-of/) [Nick Jonas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-jonas/) > [Folks, if you give people things for free, don't blame them for taking them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-woodall/folks-if-you-give-people-things-for-free-don-t-blame-them-for-taking/) [Rob Woodall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-woodall/) > [“These people did not waste things that were free. It”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-foehner-wells/these-people-did-not-waste-things-that-were-free-it/) [Jennifer Foehner Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-foehner-wells/) > [“Isn't it funny that in a society that values freedom above all things, things that are free are not valued?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/isn-t-it-funny-that-in-a-society-that-values-freedom-above-all-things/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [Sometimes you need to set things free even though it's hard.Things may not be the same but soon you'll see that what you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-tiwari/sometimes-you-need-to-set-things-free-even-though-it-s-hard-things/) [Abhishek Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-tiwari/) > [“Most things free-born will submit to anything for a salary.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/most-things-free-born-will-submit-to-anything-for-a-salary/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [I look at you, looking at me, now I know why they say the best things are free. :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maj/i-look-at-you-looking-at-me-now-i-know-why-they-say-the-best-things/) [Maj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maj/) > [“It's when you start doing things for free, that you start to grow wings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/it-s-when-you-start-doing-things-for-free-that-you-start-to-grow-wings/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [People think the free market is a philosophy, they think that it is a creed. It is none of those things. Free market is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/people-think-the-free-market-is-a-philosophy-they-think-that-it-is-a/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [“Too many things can be free in this world, but freedom is never among them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/too-many-things-can-be-free-in-this-world-but-freedom-is-never-among/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [It's weird; my fascination with tech was kind of combined with the fact that my parents would never pay for anything. It got me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-esmail/it-s-weird-my-fascination-with-tech-was-kind-of-combined-with-the/) [Sam Esmail](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-esmail/) > [The whole world is an art gallery when you're mindful. There are beautiful things everywhere and they're free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-tart/the-whole-world-is-an-art-gallery-when-you-re-mindful-there-are/) [Charles Tart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-tart/) ## More by Astra Taylor > [One connection I see between the work I did on philosophy and my work on technology is that both communities tend to mystify and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/astra-taylor/one-connection-i-see-between-the-work-i-did-on-philosophy-and-my-work/) [Astra Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/astra-taylor/) > [“wealth and power are shifting to those who control the platforms on which all of us create, consume, and connect. The companies that provide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/astra-taylor/wealth-and-power-are-shifting-to-those-who-control-the-platforms-on/) [Astra Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/astra-taylor/) > [It's very complicated. 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But the devil keeps advertising, Father. The devil does a lot of commercials.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-peter-blatty/god-never-talks-but-the-devil-keeps-advertising-father-the-devil-does/) [William Peter Blatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-peter-blatty/) > [I like Valentine's Day. The trouble is the florists and the candy-makers and the card people are all advertising so much, you don't dare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/i-like-valentine-s-day-the-trouble-is-the-florists-and-the-candy/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [I happened to be spotted by a modeling agent who offered me a part-time job at 16. 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