Adblock Plus has released a browser for Android that blocks adverts.
Adblock Browser, based on Firefox for Android, integrates adblocking into the browsing experience. The existing extension for mobile, Adblock Plus for Android, currently works with existing browsers on the device, particularly Firefox.
However, in a blog post Ben Williams, PR Director of Adblock Plus, argued it was being hampered by two major factors. Firstly, the product was removed from the Google Play store on the grounds of "interference with another service or product". Without appearing in the major app stores, Williams claims it is "practically invisible to the vast majority of mobile users."
The other problem cited is that the existing extension can only block ads over HTTP connections.
"For now, our goal is to build a solid mobile browser with great adblocking integrated," Williams writes. "That’s also our goal during the beta: We will fix bugs and we will address usability issues, but we’re not planning to do major changes."
"Building our own browser gives us a lot more freedom to integrate adblocking as a first class feature that’s easy to understand and configure."
"We’re currently sticking largely to Firefox for Android’s UI, but we will over time move things in a different direction, based on our own users’ needs and wishes."
He added: "We will make adblocking (and content blocking in general) more flexible and easier to configure. And we will look into ways of bringing Adblock Browser and the desktop browser of your choice together in a way that makes sense."
