> I wonder how people would have responded if this were about Android.
As someone who uses both Android and iOS (the dual usage being in large part because I develop software for both) if this were about Android I wouldn't be surprised in the least, but I do find it surprising for Apple to increasingly allow for this sort of thing.
IMO the major positive differentiators Apple has over Google as a phone OS provider are the perception of protecting user privacy and also not plastering ads everywhere. This example weakens both of those perceptions at the same time.
So (for me) its not about Apple being worse than Google when it comes to this stuff, its just surprising they are willing to be as bad.
In any case, I don't have a horse in the race to cheer for. Google's major positive differentiator has been flexibility for advanced users to run what they want with minimal OS interference, and Google has been tamping down on that, so from my perspective both appear to be destroying their previous benefits to meet somewhere in the worst-case (for end users) middle.
It's really not that deceptive. It says "Ad", right there. I can think of about 40 different, more deceptive ways they could have gone. If that was their goal... they failed.
These responses are a bit surprising. I wonder how people would have responded if this were about Android.