> If a way to serve unblockable ads existed, it would already be implemented and widely used
I don't think this is necessarily true. It's clear that any tech that literally forces users to look at something is coercive. Forcing your users to wear a Clockwork Orange style eye gadget is clearly not acceptable. Playing ads and asking your users not to switch to another channel is clearly acceptable. The game is largely about gaining or ceding ground between those extremes about what's socially acceptable rather than what's technologically possible.
Many users are okay with some level of ads. It's easier to ratchet up the ads those users are willing to watch than it is to get increasingly authoritarian with the small number of users who insist on not seeing any ads. For example, YouTube didn't attempt to fight ad blockers for years. They're only really starting now because it's trying to hit revenue targets.
I don't think this is necessarily true. It's clear that any tech that literally forces users to look at something is coercive. Forcing your users to wear a Clockwork Orange style eye gadget is clearly not acceptable. Playing ads and asking your users not to switch to another channel is clearly acceptable. The game is largely about gaining or ceding ground between those extremes about what's socially acceptable rather than what's technologically possible.
Many users are okay with some level of ads. It's easier to ratchet up the ads those users are willing to watch than it is to get increasingly authoritarian with the small number of users who insist on not seeing any ads. For example, YouTube didn't attempt to fight ad blockers for years. They're only really starting now because it's trying to hit revenue targets.