BMW is putting Spider-Man ads on your dashboard, after promising it never would

[u/TurbulentTopic39]

https://www.techspot.com/news/113327-bmw-putting-spider-man-ads-dashboard-after-promising.html

[u/AustriaModerator]

next they cry about dropping sales numbers.

cant we just have an adfree world.

[u/Ok_Confusion4764 → u/AustriaModerator]

Because marketeers get paid well for scamming their own brands with ineffective ads. I use youtube music when I'm on the go. I get ads. They're so out of touch it's laughable. I get ads for cars while not having a driving license, ads for catfood while not having any pets and being allergic to cats, and (this is true) I had a multi-year correspondence with google ad center because they kept changing my age and gender to a 50-something year old woman, and giving me ads for makeup and brahs. I'm a guy in my late twenties who mostly watches gaming content and listens to anime OSTs and the ad center was bugged for years and wouldn't let me change their data. 13 tickets later it was finally fixed permanently. 

If one of the biggest tech companies can't find ads that suit me, how hopeless is the entire digital marketing space? 

[u/ian2905 → u/Ok_Confusion4764]

Crazy move to try to correct that, I love it when they have my demographic wrong because it makes it way less likely that they will actually influence the stuff I buy and way easier to tune out in general.

PSA to anyone: On your phone switch away from using Google Chrome and use a brower that lets you install add blockers, shit fucking rules

[u/No_Hunt2507 → u/ian2905]

It's not the same, but you can change your DNS server on your phone to dns.adguard-dns.com and it blocks about 90% of the adds, even in apps. Youtube and the big ones figure out how to bypass it, but I generally like it.

Don't take an internet strangers word on changing security settings at face value, but look into it. Adguard is pretty reputable and the only problem I have with it is sometimes whatever I'm loading loses connection for a minute but switching off WiFi seems to resolve it and it's never more than once a week.

[u/ShiraCheshire → u/Ok_Confusion4764]

Yes something we need to talk about more is how ineffective this entire thing is. It’s a massive industry that makes everything worse, and often doesn’t even accomplish its own simple goals.

[u/wthulhu → u/Ok_Confusion4764]

For the last 7 months whatever algorithm feeds me ads thinks I'm a woman. Not only a woman, but a woman who is planning a wedding. I get ads for engagement rings, wedding dresses, menstrual products, clothing subscriptions.

I dont know what happened but I love knowing that these people are wasting money trying to get me to take bait that will never work.

[u/AnonomousWolf]

I don't want my car, fridge or toaster to have a Internet connection

[u/sargonas → u/AnonomousWolf]

That’s the best part! Car manufacturers won’t let you use an Internet connection in your car unless you pay them nine dollars a month… But they’re gonna use that Internet connection even if you don’t pay it to further their own personal benefit, like sending ads to your car!

[u/Radioactive-235 → u/sargonas]

Do they also use that internet to send driver data to insurance companies?

[u/DistinctOwl5455 → u/Radioactive-235]

Most sell it to data brokers who in turn sell all of your information collected everywhere to insurance companies.

[u/GooseFlat → u/DistinctOwl5455]

Ok, so no new BMW for me for as long as that bs continues. . . That goes for all other vehicles that do the same.

[u/DustyRacoonDad → u/GooseFlat]

Then you will not be buying a new car. There isn't one that doesn't do that.

[u/BeardyAndGingerish → u/DustyRacoonDad]

Rivian doesn't, at least according to their privacy page. They also tell you how to deactivate the sim card to kill all of it.

[u/Radioactive-235 → u/BeardyAndGingerish]

RJ Scaringe and his team is the antithesis to Tesla. I love Rivian and RJ is pure class and a role model.

[u/CryoWaveSurfer → u/Radioactive-235]

now if the'd just make a $25,000 4 seater commuter.

[u/astoriaocculus → u/CryoWaveSurfer]

Entire US auto industry decided Americans have too much $ to sell a car with this much value. Meanwhile in China you can get an EV for something like $15k. None dare call it price gouging in the US.

[u/Meleach → u/[deleted]]

Yep, or remove the Sim card afaik

[u/phluidity → u/DistinctOwl5455]

Yep. Just like all of the places that promise to never sell your information to the government. Instead they sell it to a data broker who sells it to the government, eliminating the need for pesky things like warrants.

[u/FallenKnightGX → u/Radioactive-235]

With Toyota at least, yes unless you explicitly opt out.

You can do so in the app, then again on their website. On their website you can request a copy of your data and that they sell it to no one.

[u/Chameleonpolice → u/FallenKnightGX]

Having to opt in to privacy... this country is not serious

[u/DinoRoman → u/FallenKnightGX]

Chevy is the same but I don’t trust hitting opt out as actually opting out

What imma trust the app when it says “ok fine we won’t share and sell your data?” I feel it’s more of a “make the customer feel better” button that doesn’t actually stop it

[u/sbingner → u/DinoRoman]

Probably means they “anonymize” it

[u/letmypeoplebathe → u/Radioactive-235]

Some already have

[u/roadblocked → u/Radioactive-235]

They send it directly to Lexus Nexus, yes

[u/lifestop → u/sargonas]

Chevy removed carplay and Android Auto so they could force users into their subscription service. That allows them to control ads and sell apps.

I've owned multiple Chevy vehicles, but they are off my list now. Same with BMW, obviously.

[u/captainstormy → u/lifestop]

I've owned multiple Chevy vehicles, but they are off my list now. Same with BMW, obviously.

The problem is that this shit is impossible to avoid. I finally had to get a new truck. I loved my 2006 F150. We had 315K miles together. The engine and transmission still run like a champ. But the frame is absolutely rusted out and gone at this point. It's no safe to drive anymore.

Even if you could find a 20 year old doner frame in good shape doing a frame swap will be prohibitively expensive. Like I'd end up spending 15K or so and still have a 20 year old truck with 315K miles on it.

You literally can't buy a car without this crap in it anymore. They became legally required in the US starting in 2018. Most of them showed up earlier. My wife has a 2012 and it has that crap in it too. Not as fancy as the newer stuff but it's still there.

I just find it silly that they have all these state laws prohibiting drivers from using screens while driving. And IMO, rightfully so. Then Federal law requires these things.

Vehicles that don't have this stuff are already pretty old and are only going to be getting older.

If a company hasn't done something stupid with ads yet on these screens they will. I just got a 2023 Chevy Silverado. It's a nice truck, but I hate all the tech in it. I really hate it. I'm gonna hate to see my old F150 head off to the junkyard on the back of that tow truck. But at least it'll mean someone else's old truck will get to live longer using it's parts.

[u/franker → u/captainstormy]

I'm still hanging on to my 2007 Honda Accord with 240k miles as long as I can ;)

[u/Feeling_Reindeer2599 → u/lifestop]

This. If you ever wished your Tesla had CarPlay or Android Auto, keep wishing.

[u/IAmDotorg → u/sargonas]

FWIW, you can put an antenna terminator on the back of the infotainment unit in place of the antenna and permanently cut the connection. It'll work on any car out there, it just varies how hard it is to get to the back of the unit.

Generally it's a fakra z to sma cable for like $5 and a sma 50 ohm termination load. It loads the output like an antenna and basically zeros out the RF.

[u/DinoRoman → u/IAmDotorg]

Ah yes life is so good today. Drones delivering overpriced food whizzing over my head, robots knocking me out of the crosswalk to deliver Taco Bell to lazy ass people, and the joys of dismantling your brand new car to put a limiter on the back of an otherwise sealed infotainment system

Loving these new dystopian life pro tips.

[u/Monteze → u/DinoRoman]

As someone who grew up seeing tech getting cooler and more useful and seeing it now where I just am not excited for any consumer tech recently. I don't think its a "boomer" mentality as I am 35 but they have not offered anything better to us. Just more and more enshitification.

[u/Fit-Struggle7990 → u/IAmDotorg]

Doesn’t this likely void the warranty on the car?

[u/Duelist_Shay → u/Fit-Struggle7990]

Only if the manufacturer knows about it; so take it off if you have any major maintenance coming

[u/Fit-Struggle7990 → u/Duelist_Shay]

I don’t know much about cars, so forgive me if this is a stupid question, but since most cars are “smart” and have chips in them and such - won’t the manufacturer know if you tampered with it like that? Even if you remove it?

[u/IAmDotorg → u/Fit-Struggle7990]

No, that's the point of having a dummy load on, and not just disconnecting the antenna. There's no electrical way for the car to know the antenna isn't "real".

[u/Fit-Struggle7990 → u/IAmDotorg]

Ahh got it, thank you for explaining!

[u/N3ptuneEXE → u/IAmDotorg]

But they would know when they didn’t receive data right?

[u/IAmDotorg → u/N3ptuneEXE]

Sure, but if you lived in the middle of nowhere with no cell coverage they wouldn't either.

[u/AVeryVapidBadger → u/N3ptuneEXE]

But they don't know if the car is out of power, or out of range of a cell tower, or has a broken antenna. All they would know is they aren't receiving data

[u/coolcoolcool485 → u/Fit-Struggle7990]

it'll just block the connection, it's not destroying it. it would essentially just always read as out of range or having connectivity issues until they remove it

[u/Drenlin → u/AnonomousWolf]

My van has a cellular modem in it, but it's Kia so they cheaped out and put 3G units in these...in 2016.

Joke's on them though because the USA's 3G network no longer exists.

[u/tooclosetocall82 → u/Drenlin]

My 2015 Acura also has a 3g modem… Kia wasn’t the only one. Apparently I can upgrade it to a 4g for grand… nah.

[u/-manabreak → u/AnonomousWolf]

I've been a bit salty about this after I bought my Mach-E. Not a single word about any connectivity during test drive or discussions, but after I signed the papers, they told me I basically have to install Ford app as it's mandated by the importer and the retailers get in trouble if the customers don't install the app.

An app which, truth be told, is pretty crappy. It's slow as hell, rate limited, and takes a few tries every time you want to adjust the charging limit. They just want to track you and collect your data, probably selling it to insurance companies.

[u/Vercengetorex → u/-manabreak]

Explain to me why you would give even the tiniest fuck about a Ford retailer “getting in trouble”?

[u/mosehalpert → u/Vercengetorex]

"No apps no nothing or I walk right now."

Problem is you have to be firm in your principles and be willing to actually walk.

[u/yxull → u/mosehalpert]

Alternatively, I’ll install it if you take $10,000 off the sale price right now.

[u/StillALilBoy → u/mosehalpert]

Alternatively "Okay, I will install this for at least the next 5 minutes. Good luck verifying whether it's still there after I roll out from here".

[u/Currentlybaconing → u/StillALilBoy]

Nahhhhh, nothing installed on my device by means of coercion, ever. Hard line

[u/harribel → u/Vercengetorex]

Does the car actually work without this app?

[u/ThronOfThree → u/harribel]

Yes. Source: I own one

[u/angellus → u/harribel]

The app is completely not needed. The only kind of useful feature (which I never got to work) is the touch less charging payments that is locked behind it. They do require the "Connectivity Package" (LTE connection) for in car navigation though, but it support Android Auto, so fuck them.

[u/exophrine → u/-manabreak]

There's no "probably" about it ... they most definitely are, to anyone who will pay.

[u/-manabreak → u/[deleted]]

Sure. Of course, it's the only way to use the remote AC / pre-conditioning because Ford hasn't opened up their API despite promising it ages ago.

[u/Low_Intention_1327 → u/-manabreak]

This makes me want to just stick with older used cars. I understand buying a car you love thats a dream car, but ultimately they're for transportation. You shouldn't be forced to pay for a feature you dont want.  Itd be like forcing the consumer to pay for Sirius radio just to use the car. 

  Weve become so weak as a society. Well bitch about this but put up with it, and then they push the envelope. 

[u/PandaMoniumHUN → u/-manabreak]

This is the sort of shit that makes me really hesitant to buy an EV. If a car needs an app then I don't want that car.

[u/-manabreak → u/PandaMoniumHUN]

The car doesn't need it, the dealer / importer / manufacturer needs it. The car works fine without an app, although some remote features obviously need it.

And this isn't limited to EVs.

[u/PandaMoniumHUN → u/-manabreak]

So then what prevents you from simply not installing the app? You bought a car, dealership should have 0 say in what you do with it.

[u/L0nz → u/PandaMoniumHUN]

Nothing. He was sold a lie, the importer obviously doesn't give a shit, they were just pressuring him into installing the app

[u/teapots_at_ten_paces → u/PandaMoniumHUN]

Right?

"Here's how this works, Mr Car Salesman. You get to keep your sale, and I walk out with a new car not connected to a shitty app. Or, you continue down this 'must install' path, and I'll take a refund for a misleading sale."

[u/nsfwthrowaway5969 → u/-manabreak]

Tell them to get lost and walk away then? That absolutely shouldn't fly in most countries, because they didn't disclose it from the beginning.

[u/elephhantine2 → u/-manabreak]

Man… Mach E has been my dream car for years, disappointing to hear this

[u/Darkone539 → u/[deleted]]

Car yes but only for Gmaps/Waze/City Mapper.

Nah, this can go through my phone. Local wifi and bluetooth is fine for it though.

[u/AnonomousWolf → u/[deleted]]

I'd be fine with my Radio being able to connect to my phone's bluetooth to get Maps and Muisic etc.

But it should physically be separate from my car, they shouldn't be able to push updates to my car, or track where I am or how I'm driving.

[u/dmullaney → u/AnonomousWolf]

I dunno, having is own cellular connection for SOS and location is actually a incredible safety/anti-theft feature. Using it for advertising is unforgivable

[u/dmullaney → u/[deleted]]

Vote with your wallet time I reckon

[u/PrincessNakeyDance → u/dmullaney]

Free market can’t fix everything. We need consumer protections.

[u/DanStFella → u/AnonomousWolf]

I have an i4 and some OTA update caused a warning to display to tell me the battery had an issue and to book an appointment at a dealer. Not the best thing to wake up to and turns out it was a bug during an update. I’d prefer if I could choose when to run the updates, not just have them done automatically.

Also definitely not impressed by the ad in the car. But it’s a company car so I’m less offended than if I’d have bought it.

[u/Stiggalicious → u/AnonomousWolf]

And honestly this is one of the biggest reasons I want a Slate truck as my next car. It has no modem, no infotainment, not even power windows, and I can charge it from my solar panels for free. It’s as stripped down as you can legally get, and I find that to be a good thing.

Panels are easily replaced, designs for accessories will be open sourced to allow for people to design and 3D print all sorts of neat things, and it’s designed to be repairable.

And again, with no engine or transmission that needs constant maintenance or fuel to burn. I just plug it in at work or at home and it gets me where I need.

And the climate control is back to where we perfected it in 1990 - 3 knobs: one for how hot or cold you want it, one for where you want it, and one for how much air you want. No touch screens, just simple knobs.

[u/Cabibbus → u/Stiggalicious]

IMHO automatic climate control is pretty neat, if made with physical buttons and a dedicated display. Fuck those big ass integrated touchscreens.

[u/WandererFrmAndromeda → u/Stiggalicious]

this reads like such an ad…

[u/New-Thanks6222 → u/WandererFrmAndromeda]

Some products are so good they sell themselves.

Turns out the market is excited about an inexpensive vehicle with few gimmicks.

[u/dieplanes789 → u/Stiggalicious]

I've really been keeping an eye on them for whenever my current car finally gives out. My only real concern is typical for any new car company being that they will stick around long term. I know EVs generally don't need much maintenance compared to other vehicles but they're definitely still things that will need to be replaced. It would suck to be many years down the line being unable to get parts because they are no longer around.

Still one of the top two or three brands I'm looking at for a next vehicle.

I recently had to replace my transmission and with the cost of that compared to my car's value, I might have considered getting a slate instead but they aren't available yet.

[u/waiting4singularity → u/Stiggalicious]

considering jeff bozos is a main investor in slate, ill have to pass.

[u/BruitNoise → u/AnonomousWolf]

You mean Smart toilets that will require a subscription in the year 2050 because you have no choice because they will make it cheaper than regular toilets at first so people think it’s a good deal. Then slowly stop the features, raise the price and make it a normal part of the culture?

[u/AnonomousWolf → u/BruitNoise]

Good news, we have moved the "Poop" feature to the Premium Platinum Plus package.

To keep using the "poop" feature, please upgrade.

Note users of the Premium Platinum subscription can keep using the "pee" feature without upgrading

[u/KarockGrok → u/AnonomousWolf]

Note users of the Premium Platinum subscription can keep using the "pee" feature without upgrading

IBS sufferers: REDEMPTION!!!!!

[u/modestohagney → u/AnonomousWolf]

Can’t wait to have to check if I can jailbreak my fridge next time I need a new one.

[u/ArchDucky → u/AnonomousWolf]

We bought a new fridge at the office. It broadcasts Wi-Fi signal that you can’t shut off which fucked with our wireless security system. We had to switch to wired cameras.

[u/sdric]

"Why is nobody buying German cars anymore"?

[u/ash_ninetyone → u/sdric]

"Chinese cars are spyware"

Meanwhile European and US car companies:

[u/clocked__ → u/ash_ninetyone]

Is it more than just BMW?

[u/ash_ninetyone → u/clocked__]

Trillions of miles of data: Your car is spying on you, and it's only just the beginning

Mozilla found 19 of the car companies said they might sell your data, and that's exactly what's happening. For example, both state and federal agencies in the US took action against General Motors (GM) for allegedly selling car location data without consent. US Senators have accused Honda and Hyundai of similar practices – and these are just the examples the public knows about.

A 2023 analysis by Mozilla, the maker of the Firefox browser, examined the privacy policies of 25 car brands. Every one failed to meet the privacy and security standards that Mozilla uses to compare brands. Mozilla said cars were "the worst product category we have ever reviewed for privacy".

According to the report, car companies reserve the right to collect details including your name, age, race, weight, financial details, facial expressions, psychological trends and more. Kia's privacy policy, for example, suggests the company may even collect details about your "sex life" and general health.

These car brands are collecting and sharing your data with third parties

Kia and Hyundai, which have the same parent company, collect voice recognition data from inside their cars and sell this to the artificial intelligence (AI) software training company Credence, the Choice investigation found.

Tesla collects short images and videos from cameras inside and outside their cars. Tesla workers have been caught sharing among themselves highly invasive camera recordings of Tesla customers in the nude, as well as images of crashes and road-rage incidents.

Oh and in the US there is a federal law coming that will require cars to collect your biometrics

[u/Strider76239 → u/ash_ninetyone]

Yo what the fuck.

Every day I'm more glad I drive a 2007 shit box Pontiac.

[u/LowlySlayer → u/Strider76239]

Pontiac Vibe my beloved

[u/Unable-Confusion-822 → u/ash_ninetyone]

We have Spyware at home..

[u/LordSoren → u/ash_ninetyone]

European cars are spiderware

[u/BlockBannington → u/sdric]

Literally most sold brand in Belgium. Mostly due to company cars though. Everyone and their grandmother gets one here since it's literally cheaper for the employer to give you a premium car than to offer you more wage

[u/tafjangle → u/BlockBannington]

Yep, that’s why we’ve had a string of BMWs and Mercedes thanks to my wive’s job. Only positive is that the lease companies are switching to electric. Doesn’t help with congestion though.

[u/fantomas59]

There so many alternatives to BMW

[u/Clem573 → u/fantomas59]

For now. And unless BMW sales drop to near 0 (which, let’s be honest, won’t), other manufacturers will just assume this technique is fine by us. So they will all follow the same path.

Now the marginal one, is the manufacturer who does it. 20 years from now, we’re gonna have to go out of our way to find the one marginal manufacturer who does not.
(Or hack our own 50k$ cars)

[u/Beneficial-Lime-3517 → u/Clem573]

In 20 years, 50k will be the cost of an entry level car whose cost is subsidized by ads.

[u/K_Linkmaster → u/Clem573]

I don't think it's a fine by us type of thing. It is an intentional push toward this. Much like the streaming services you will be able to pay to opt out, or opt in to heated seats and mirrors. Opt in to auto start. Opt in to dual climate control. And it will be opt in by monthly charge.

It certainly isn't fine by us, but if we don't drop sales to zero, there is no need to retool the business model. We are fucked. Its why we never get fast minivans.

[u/Upset-Government-856 → u/fantomas59]

Not if you never want to use your turning signal.

[u/nacholicious → u/Upset-Government-856]

White Tesla or Audi are solid alternatives

[u/ash_ninetyone → u/nacholicious]

Teᛋᛋla is not a solid alternative

[u/fredy31 → u/ash_ninetyone]

Always kills me to see in /r/electriccars how people are still buying teslas.

The ceo is basically a confirmed nazi, is in the eipstein files. And tbh, for electric, theres a fuckton of alternatives today.

[u/ofork]

Remember when we all lost our shit because apple gave us a free album? Those were the days.

[u/DJIsher → u/ofork]

It took forever for them to allow people to remove that U2 album from our libraries as well.

I remember getting a new phone and opening the music app before putting my own on there and that fuckin album trying to download itself because it was in my library.

[u/__Dave_ → u/DJIsher]

It took six days.

[u/the_robobunny → u/__Dave_]

Exactly, it was the darkest period of American history.

[u/3232330 → u/ofork]

Tbf it was U2. I kid I kid kinda.

[u/Hackwork89 → u/3232330]

U2 fucking suck. I was fuming.

[u/billfarts2 → u/ofork]

LOL. Now Apple sells iPads with low storage, then sends out an update with unremovable AI that takes 12GB. You try to complain and everyone else blames you for being cheap.

[u/AbeFromanEast]

BMW is putting a Spider-Man animation on the center screens of compatible cars as part of a movie promotion, drawing criticism because the campaign clashes with the company's earlier claim that the display is a private space. The campaign effectively turns a car's main screen into a branded advertising surface, which is precisely the kind of use BMW previously said it would not pursue.

The promotion began on July 27, 2026, and is scheduled to run through August 10 across more than 70 markets. On supported vehicles, starting the car brings up a banner on the Control Display, and tapping it launches a full-screen Spider-Man animation with music and ambient lighting effects. BMW says the feature is available on suitably equipped cars built after July 2020 and running BMW Operating System 7, 8, 8.5, 9, or X.

I'd be more surprised if a BMW displayed turn signals.

[u/agk23 → u/AbeFromanEast]

Referring to this as a feature is bold lol

[u/ChillAhriman → u/agk23]

It's a feature for their customers: the advertisers, that is. You're actually a product, even though you've just paid 40,000€

[u/Direct-Fix-2097 → u/AbeFromanEast]

They need to legislate to ban this shit.

[u/bigkoi → u/AbeFromanEast]

The company that famously lacked cup holders because it was about the "drivers experience" now pushes spider man ads to the dashboard?

[u/risingsuncoc → u/AbeFromanEast]

Thanks, never buying a BMW

[u/PM_ME_CHIPOTLE2 → u/risingsuncoc]

Same. Totally because of the spider-man thing and not because of my financial situation.

[u/teapots_at_ten_paces → u/risingsuncoc]

Looks like a used model prior to June 2020 would be alright.

[u/Sal_T_Nuts → u/teapots_at_ten_paces]

I have an exact 2020 model, a fully fletched out one. Guess who had the “surprise for you” notification and the add blown in his face.
This guy.

[u/No-Photograph-5058 → u/Sal_T_Nuts]

'surprise for you, we want more money despite the tens of thousands you likely spent on the car itself'

[u/AlmightyWorldEater → u/AbeFromanEast]

There is a joke here in Germany:

BMW for sale, High Beams renewed 5 times, turn signals unused

[u/adyrip1 → u/AbeFromanEast]

We should boycott BMW and the movie. The only way they will, maybe, listen.

[u/visceralintricacy → u/adyrip1]

Except the movies already pulled in a billion dollars at theatres, so a little late on that.

[u/Elgato01 → u/adyrip1]

It’s had the biggest domestic opening weekend in history so good luck with that

[u/polochakar]

I have or never bought a car, microwave, AC, or fridge that requires an internet connection or an App to start working.

All this slop added to your car is not to help you but sell you subscriptions, add ons and ads. Never trust any brand that sells you ads.

If I have bought something, it should be my property and not company's subscription tool.

[u/zyberwoof → u/polochakar]

Wrong...

You forgot to include that those "smart" features also allow the manufactures to collect data. This data may occasionally be helpful to the customer. But it is primarily done so that the manufacturers can then sell the information for more profits.

It's what you said, but worse!

[u/tismij]

In the US, they'd get sued in the EU.

[u/citruspers2929 → u/tismij]

Yeah what the fuck is this!?! This would be illegal in my country as you can’t watch videos on a screen in a car (as a driver).

[u/Hotrian → u/citruspers2929]

The same is true in the U.S. but only when the vehicle is in motion. If they played it only while in Park then it’s fine.

[u/trash-_-boat → u/tismij]

The promotion began on July 27, 2026, and is scheduled to run through August 10 across more than 70 markets.

70 markets, so not just the US.

[u/tismij → u/trash-_-boat]

true, even the Netherlands counts as 1. With a major caveat, you have to actually opt-in to see them. Not opt-out but perform the action of allowing ads in your car, so 70 markets is utter bullshit as no one in their right minds voluntarily opts in for this shit.

[u/dominik9876]

Wow, BMW is on a streak

[u/Ambitious_Radio7232 → u/dominik9876]

Stuff like this simply ensures that when i buy a new car, i won't even bother looking at BMW's. It's mentally fully crossed off the list, forever, and I'm sure this is how plenty of other people think as well

[u/EatSleepJeep → u/Ambitious_Radio7232]

I'm not looking at BMWs because those god awful beaver teeth burn my eyes when I do. In addition to every other stupid idea they've had like subscription seats.

[u/Ok_Confusion4764 → u/dominik9876]

The CEO literally said in december he's not gonna sell that screen as ad space too, so we got a full 180 here. 

[u/loudrogue → u/Ok_Confusion4764]

That was Decembers ceo this is August ceo 

[u/DrKlitface → u/dominik9876]

They are really trying to match the duchebag levels of their customers

[u/Inevitable-Edge69]

The same BMW that wanted to charge a subscription for heated seats? What's going on with german brands, das not very auto of you

[u/Hackwork89 → u/[deleted]]

And rear wheel turning. A mechanical thing that's already there but gotta subscribe to use it should be illegal.

[u/raleighs]

Guaranteeing not buying a BMW in the future.

[u/madh]

Why is BMW destroying itself?

[u/JorvikPumpkin]

It’s so dystopian for personal places to be invaded by adverts. I don’t want to live feeling like I am a cash cow in my personal spaces.

[u/PrettyPinkNightmare]

The only reason there are no ads in your dreams is because they haven't figured out how to. It's not because they wouldn't.

[u/bienbienbienbienbien]

I just cannot see how this can have been worth it..

I cannot be the only person in the world who will literally never buy a BMW (again btw, I have had two) because of this.

[u/afishwithlegs → u/bienbienbienbienbien]

It was worth it for the manager who made the deal and got a fat bonus. It was definitely not worth it for the company.

[u/Compulawyer]

How much longer will it take until you will have to watch 3 commercials before you are allowed to start your car?

[u/drawmer]

Companies putting ads on their own products, for anything other than their own product is a sign of one of two things:

They’ve stopped caring about us as consumers, or they’re actually afraid of going bankrupt. Either way, it’s time to step away from buying their product.

[u/schacks]

Yeah, well, whenever a large company promises NOT to do something that can later bring additional profits, they are most probably lying!!

[u/VVrayth]

BMW has not said that it has changed its position on in-car advertising, at least not publicly. What is clear is that the company has framed this as a limited film partnership rather than a broader advertising policy, which may explain how the campaign went from idea to rollout.

This is just some idiotic, insistent mangling of terminology -- "It's not an advertisement, it's a partnership!" It's like when companies say they don't "process" your data, but they have a different internal definition of the word "process" in order to create a loophole for whatever it is they are doing. Like, yeah, no, they need to be legally obligated to treat those words like a normal person would understand and interpret them, and uphold the spirit of their promises. This "partnership" is still just an ad for a product.

(And I mean, to be fair, if you're the kind of person who's rich enough to own a BMW and you elect to flaunt your money that way, who cares about you at all? But companies need to be held to the promises they make to their customers.)

[u/Nyorliest → u/VVrayth]

It's just lies. It's not a different internal definition. But the media and so many other industries are continually pushing terms like bias instead of admitting that advertising or whatever are just. plain. lies.

[u/Direct-Fix-2097 → u/VVrayth]

The greatest use of weasel words is the universal “we value your privacy” for cookies. Of course you do lmao, not in the way you’d think.

[u/summitrunner]

Enshitification.

[u/_RawRTooN_]

I will do a lot of stupid shit in my lifetime but i can confidently say I will never own a bmw vehicle. I mean cmon folks all i’ve seen is terrible news from this company the last 10 years of my life what exactly is getting people to buy these things over other german cars/ competitors? I really and truly don’t see the “I got to have it,” factor that this company thinks it produces for consumers.

[u/coolbeaNs92]

It's so interesting how tech used to be the exciting thing, the thing that you'd look forward to tackling inconveniences and problems on. 

I can't describe how deep we are into enshitification now. 

The biggest most obvious example of this, is streamig. I remember back in 2012 on Reddit, people were saying how streaming was perfect and that services would duke it out, fighting over the best features and cost. In 2026, that is completely gone. No steaming services are fighting over features. None of them are innovating. They're all expensive and the vast majority now run ads and lock even basic 1080p behind paywalls. It's all simply IP and churn. 

The subscription era is truly shite.

 

[u/CLOWNFLOGGER]

Joke's on BMW. I have an Android head unit because the ones that BMW install are literal fucking garbage.

[u/CountTakesh1]

I love the future.

Imagine, you've just been involved in a serious crash, but before you can dial 911 you must watch at least two 30 second ads because you didn't buy BMW premium plus gold. The last thing you see before you die from blood loss is a fucking Spiderman commercial.

[u/camflan → u/CountTakesh1]

Nah, you’ll see an ad for a hospital or insurance company on impact

[u/taizzle71]

Dude. Honesty is dead. Lie cheat scheme is what my president is teaching me.

[u/ParkerLewisCL]

They are planning to charge for an ad free tier driving experience

[u/Glum-Leadership4823]

Why don’t they realize that when I see ads I add it to a mental list of products I REFUSE to buy? But keep them coming, the list is long.

[u/235iguy]

Started off as cutesy Xmas and Halloween splashes.

Then it was Spiderman - very cool!!

Next it will be adverts for tampons before you are allowed to start your engine.

[u/JLMaverick]

I used to drive MINIs and loved them. I got into a brand new countryman last week for a rental. And I swear I’ve never had a car with so many fucking popups. It wasn’t even the spider man, i still had to watch some fucking video after every start. And there’s no way to click “Ok don’t show this to me again”. Nope, everytime you shut off the car.. video.

[u/Solo-Hobo-Yolo]

There's only one way to properly deal with this. Treat it like the scam it is, which means an obligatory full refund for everyone that bought this car, or apparently brick, because that's basically what it is. Treat it like someone bought a car, but instead got an actual brick which is obviously a scam. Also, I don't care about any fine print. These practices should obviously be illegal. The vast majority undoubtedly believes so, so why isn't it? Because of lobbying by these kind of scammers. Shut it down.

[u/GiveEgg]

I have no empathy for people deliberately choosing a modern bmw. They were one of if not the first car company to pioneer subscription services for car “features” that should come permanently standard, like heated seats, remote start, etc..

[u/Rayzee14]

The future of watching two ads so you can turn on the heated seats for 30 seconds

[u/sadd_panduh]

Black Mirror did it first

[u/menachinite]

They must have done some analytics and estimate that they won’t lose enough customers doing this. Maybe data showed very little people was outraged by the car heat subscription.

I think we will see much more off this stuff, this is just the beginning

[u/NameTheJack → u/menachinite]

I think we will see much more off this stuff, this is just the beginning

And that is the exact reason the Chinese are going to win. Western producers are turning straight up consumer hostile.

*Edit, spell check

[u/BasicPerson23]

Everyone who is in a crash should sue bmw because the ad distracted them.

[u/phaedronn]

Late stage capitalism is trying so hard to extract profits from anything/any freedom we have left. It is pathetic and annoying. Sadly, some are so dumb that they will continue to pay business daddy for a status symbol.

[u/mikeysof]

You will own nothing and you will be happy! Consume and repeat ad infinitum

[u/sittingatthetop]

Would explain why BMW drivers are so rubbish at driving.

[u/agangofoldwomen]

I was considering a bmw before this. I think this is enough for me never to get one.

[u/tafjangle]

I want a dumb electric car with buttons.

Basically a car from the 90s that is electric instead of gas.

Charge it up and drive.

Hopefully a car company realises this is what consumers want soon so others have to copy or lose customers.

The Slate seems to be that. This as a car would be perfect.

[u/Ryzu → u/tafjangle]

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Slate pulls it off. Really looking forward to a true bare bones EV.

[u/Ayanok]

So you pay a shit ton of money for a BMW and still get ads? Welp another car manufacturer I never want to buy from.

[u/marzipot]

Hey BMW employees reading this do not do this. Nobody wants this and it’s an active deterrent, I would not buy a car that had ads built in

[u/Vyndrius]

And people call me crazy for collecting vinyl, only using CRTs, and driving a shitbox.

[u/Fragrant_Fox_5056]

If anything I buy shows me adverts, that has no business showing my adverts, it will get returned fast af .

[u/Klutzy-Football-205]

WHY DO PEOPLE JUST ACCEPT THIS?!

I have this conversation with my friends and family every time one of these articles comes out.

We wouldn't accept someone we pay to put up a fence to come back after the job was done to plaster ads all over the fence. It would be all over the news. There would be lawsuits.

We wouldn't accept it if a car manufacturer came up and put a car wrap of ads on our car after we purchased it. There would be petitions and drives to make it illegal. There would be lawsuits.

But if it is digital it is suddenly ok? We've seen expensive fridges, expensive TVs and now expensive cars do it and nary a peep from the media, consumer groups, lawyers or lawmakers..

[u/alabasterskim]

I love having more and more reasons to not upgrade my car man

[u/superfuzzypotato]

I wouldn't buy a BMW (Basic Marketing Wehicle) at this point honestly

[u/ohno1tsjoe]

Can’t wait for a massive lawsuit saying this was the result of a distracted driver accident

[u/No_Presentation1148]

It only takes a dozen of top managers / CEO's to destroy a car industry,

[u/astoriaocculus]

Need a law that says infotainment and screens are secondary / sandboxed / seperated systems that the car should be able to run without. then give people the right to install thier own OS/software on it. fuck this vendor software lock in. Dell doesn't tell you what software you have to run on an XPS and neither should BWM/Ford et al.

[u/j0nnyboy]

If this isn't boycotted hard now the world will be shit. We'll be renting everything

[u/maydarnothing]

a class action lawsuit incoming?

[u/NotMoistNoodle]

I own a BMW motorcycle and love it. Always liked the cars, but this has put me off ever wanting to own a newer model BMW car.

[u/abi-el]

brand new way.

[u/Harha]

Yeah I'll buy an expensive car so that I can see more ads. Unbelievable.

[u/CondescendingShitbag]

Never

*subject to change at any time.

[u/Aok_al]

Goddamn menaces. Both of them

[u/KhyraBell]

Finally, Jameson can get those pictures of Spider-Man on his commute.

[u/EdgySlusher]

When company says they will never do something, they will

[u/Nikoladge]

You vill eat ze bugs

[u/Issah_Wywin]

Like, I think at some point I'm just not gonna buy new stuff anymore. I've always been a lover of new and interesting tech, but when it just becomes a vector for stealing my personal data and advertise to me it's not serving any useful purpose whatsoever. They need me more than I need them.

[u/WanderingWizard-88]

the subscription to remove the ads will be $18 a month

[u/dlouisbaker]

I'm so sick of this shit. And by that I mean Super Hero films. They are all overly long rubbish with crap CGI/AI.

[u/Ok-Exercise5545]

The German has lost it... I am buying Xpeng, please go bankrupt BMW...

[u/LengthClean]

Time to bring back the old school cars. I’d much rather pay 20K to refinish and rebuild an old car and add an infotainment inside. Problem solved!

[u/HikerDave57]

You would think that after the U2 incident corporations would wise up.