Ads are the worst, but we see them everywhere. They fund the content that we consume daily for free. It’s one thing to receive free ads on a website you visit, but it’s quite another when an OEM does their best to force an app on your phone to show you more ads. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what Samsung just did with the new Samsung Visit In update through the Galaxy Store.
On December 15th, Samsung in the United States updated a system app called “IPS Geofencing” with the new Samsung Visit In app. This deals and coupons app has been rolled out in other countries and regions in the past year, but just made it to the United States. IPS Geofencing was previously unused, or at least inaccessible to the user, and its function was unknown. As part of Visit In, it is used to track your location, see when you are in a store that sells Samsung products or services, and then show you related ads. Although you will need to sign up for this service, the update that enables the functionality is automatically installed in the background of devices through the Galaxy Store.
Yesterday morning I got a push notification for Visit In that appeared on my $ 2000 Galaxy Z Fold2. My incredibly expensive phone wants to track my location to show me ads so I can sell even more products. We’ve called Samsung before for its questionable advertising practices, but it’s downright insulting to install an app in the background without the user’s consent and then send a push notification to get you to use it. No doubt some unsuspecting users will absent-mindedly sign up for it. I hope Samsung changes the tune soon with the Galaxy S21 series coming up as showing ads on ultra-expensive flagships really doesn’t look good.
