Watching ads for work

Advertisements are annoying for most people, but for some, monitoring them is part of their job

- Shephali Bhatt

Last month, Amazon Prime Video introduced ads to its subscription tier in India. You can still go ad-free; it'll just cost an additional ₹129 per month on top of the existing ₹299 monthly plan. Naturally, a section of the internet wasn't thrilled.

Every time there's a furore around ads interrupting our content experience, I can't help but think of a set of people for whom this is just another day at work. Media planners, marketing consultants and ad strategists have to sit through ads not because they can't afford to go ad-free, but because it's part of the job.

Their work requires constant monitoring of ads across platforms. Exposure becomes essential market research, almost like an audit, some of them tell me. It helps them advise clients, track competitor strategies, and stay on top of where brands are showing up. And over time, this constant exposure shapes how they consume media.