Mozilla is teaming up with new subscription service Scroll to better understand how consumers react to ad-free experiences on the web and subscription funding models. Mozilla said it would test product features and ideas provided by Scroll, which has been building an ad-free news subscription service that would cost users $5 a month.
The model may offer a different alternative in the space as it allows web users to pay for an ad-free experience on their favourite sites. As part of the deal, small groups of browser users will be invited at random to respond to surveys and provide feedback.
In a statement, Mozilla said that it expects these initiatives and the collaboration with Scroll “will help shape our direction with respect to finding alternatives to the status quo advertising models.”
In a bid to be more transparent and experiment with new ideas, Mozilla states it will continue to “focus on identifying a more sustainable ecosystem balance for both publishers and users.”
It all stems from Mozilla previously stating the need to “find a better web ecosystem balance that puts publishers and users at the center of the online value exchange” as it is frustrated with “terrible experiences and pervasive tracking”. As such, Mozilla released an anti-tracking policy with Firefox 65 earlier this month as it wants users to be able to choose what data they share with what companies and understand the tradeoffs they’re making when they do, so certain tracking practices have been blocked.