How to remove the recent ad showing in the app.

[SunsetRunner]

Anyone else suddenly started having adverts on the Fitbit app? It’s really annoying and only started today since the app updated. Annoyed that I paid a lot for the fitbit Surge only to have loads of adverts on the app...can it be disabled?

Moderator Edit: Clarified Subject.

[rumj]

Dear Fitbit

I bought a surge for $350 in 2016. Although there are much cheaper options with more features out there, i bought it for the reputation of fitbit.

Today, for the first time, when i opened the app on my phone an unsolicited ad popped up. This is what spammers and other unsavoury hooligans out there do, not some company that wants to maintain its goodwill and reputation. In-your-face advertising will lead to exactly the opposite of what you are trying to accomplish.

I was looking to upgrade to a Blaze, but in view of this ad, I'll put that off and look for alternatives as well. Why would I pay close to half a grand to be bombarded with ads when i open an app?

This is an extremely bad idea, please get rid of these ads and never pop them up in my face again,

[Alicat2104]

Yes more advertising for me again this morning too. Not amused 😡

Sent from my iPhone

[tiuri]

I'm posting in this thread even though I have an Android device but my previous post was moved to this thread.

Stop showing ads in the app!

I am sick and tired of the increasing number of ads that's being shown in the app. I also noticed the huge ad banner on the dashboard can no longer be closed, unlike earlier versions. Fitbit must be getting desperate.

I know the futility of posting this, because Fitbit has ever never listened to its customers, but I am just sooo frustrated that Fitbit feels the need to spoil the user experience for people who paid good money for their products!!

And then they wonder why their share prices have been dropping for 5 years. Maybe if you listened to your customers they would appreciate that and tell other people about their good customer experience. Instead, Fitbit is doing everything to drive customers away, just look at the decision to end the production of the Fitbit One.

Moderator Edit: Format.

[MarcoGFitbit]

Hello @rumj, thanks for joining the conversation, have a warm welcome to the Fitbit Community. @Alicat2104 and @tiuri, I hope you're having a great day, thanks for taking the time to report this situation. 

I appreciate your feedback about the recent ads that have been showing up in the app. I'll make sure to pass it along to our team. 

Thanks again for taking the time to share your opinion, if there's anything else you might want to add, please feel free to reply. 

[lostincode]

Seriously, these ads used to be infrequent but now the frequency is intolerable. I already paid for your device, stop trying to shove more ads down my throat to sell me other stuff. Do you see Dell pushing Dell ads to their laptops? Ridiculous.

[SunsetRunner]

Ditto here, I (we've) already bought the fitbits - yes, a couple, and generally, we're already in the ecosystem.  The ads in the app are obnoxious, and frankly, as an existing user, you are making me not want to buy your product.  Don't consider the app a "free" app or offering, we've already purchased the product or products.  No, the ads are not encouraging me to purchase more, they are actually pushing me out.

[Rspillar]

Absolutely agree. The ads are a perfect way to alienate customers and make them feel that the product is cheap and nasty. At the very least, we should be able to opt out. Full-page ads?  Somebody at FitBit has to be taking the Mick. 

[Crono1973]

This is a canned response isn't it (Message 84 from MarcoGFitbit). Nothing is going to change is it?

[MarcoGFitbit]

Hello @Rspillar and @SunsetRunner, welcome to the Fitbit Community, thanks for joining us. It's always nice to see you @Crono1973 and @lostincode. 

I'm deeply sorry for the inconveniences you've experienced because of the ads showing in the Fitbit app. Please note that I have already forwarded your feedback about this situation but it's not up to the Community team to decide if the ads will be removed. 

Once again, thanks for all your patience and understanding, if there's anything else I can help you with, please don't hesitate to reply, I'll be happy to continue assisting you. 

[Alicat2104]

@MarcoGFitbit I know it isn't your fault or anything you can control, but is there anything we can do to prevent this annoying advertising completely? We have already spend our money buying these trackers and really shouldn't have to deal with unwanted and intrusive advertising also.

[MarcoGFitbit]

Hello @Alicat2104, I appreciate your feedback and I completely understand how invasive these ads can be and why you would like to remove them completely. At this moment my best recommendation would be voting and comment on @Rawxy's suggested idea. This is truly the best way to get the attention from our development team and let them know about your discomfort. 

As always, I appreciate your feedback and insight about this situation, please don't hesitate to reply in case there's anything else I can do to help. 

Happy stepping.  

[Bikedoc]

Since I bought Fitbit and paired to my phone I've been deluged  with a huge number of ads they take over the screen they are intrusive and certainly doesn't seem like it's appropriate considering the cost of Fitbit

[Bikedoc]

It's not just a bander is multiple full screen ads everytime I activate my phone. I want you to stop sending these ads. I spent a lot of money for your watch I don't think you have to bombard me with ads and like the other people I'll get rid of his sucker and get something else if you don't stop it

[Bikedoc]

And....?

[roozill]

And.. in an astonishing piece of bad judgement, Fitbit have now taken to
spamming my cellphone number with promotions for their newest product.

I suppose it's possible its a phishing scam.
There's no way I'm clucking the link to find out..

But given recent form i wouldn't be surprised if it really did come from
Fitbit.
Either way, I'm tossing my Fitbit for an alternative tracker.
Wish I'd never bought the thing.

[SunsetRunner]

And once again a full-screen ad that I cannot X out of has completely frozen my Fitbit app, leaving me more convinced than ever that I will never ever again buy another FItbit.

[Ostrea]

And the Suggestion linked above is marked Not Currently Planned. The app is unreliable about tracking the hourly steps, so I'm constantly in it to verify that it actually picked them up. Which means I'm constantly X-ing out of full page ads. I expect this will be my last Fitbit.

[KateFitbit]

@Ostrea, thanks for calling this out. @LizFitbit updated the feature suggestion last week. At this time, It's likely we'll continue to display the occasional ad to let customers know about new products, features or promotions. The data that any ads take up is negligible and they are always dismissible - you should be able to swipe or exit any ads in the app.

[SunsetRunner]

@KateFitbit  Unfortunately, "should be" is not what is actually happening.

Last night I got a full-screen ad while I was in the middle of entering an activity, and it completely froze the app (ios on iPhone 8). After closing and reopening the app, I had to hit the X about 10 times to make the ad go away. Then I had to go back and start  from the beginning with logging my activity. 

This is extremely frustrating and shows a complete lack of care for customers in its implementation. During the 10 minutes or so I spent being frustrated with this and trying to log my workout, I can guarantee you that I told everyone at the gym who would listen why I will never buy another Fitbit.

[amyhughes]

Please see the app store review guidelines: 3.2.2 (vi) Apps should allow a user to get what they’ve paid for without performing additional tasks, such as posting on social media, uploading contacts, checking in to the app a certain number of times, etc. Apps should not require users to rate the app, review the app, watch videos, download other apps, tap on advertisements, or take other similar actions in order to access functionality, content, use the app, or receive monetary or other compensation.