Image via Niantic Labs

After nigh six years in which the majority of its revenue came from microtransactions, sponsored Pokéstops, and the like, it appears that Pokémon Go may be venturing into the world of more than intrusive in-game advertizement. Datamining group PokeMiners revealed on Twitter recently that the 0.227.0 update included, among other things buried in the code, placeholders for the Google Ad Library.

What that means is that Niantic is likely to introduce Google Ads in a futurity update. From the placeholders discovered past PokeMiners, these could include small banner ads, half-folio ads, or even total-page ones. This would exist a pregnant stride abroad from their current, far less intrusive monetization strategy, which hinges on microtransactions and getting businesses to sponsor Pokéstops and gyms.

Fans are picking upwardly on this, and many aren't happy. Several take taken to Twitter and Reddit to lambast Niantic, accusing the company of greed instead of putting players' desires first. Some are fifty-fifty threatening to delete the game if the new ads are introduced. Others, however, are taking a more wait-and-see approach, wondering if the ads might exist implemented every bit an alternative way to earn microtransaction currency.

Either way, it seems Niantic's intentions are pretty clear. The chief question seems to exist 1 of implementation, and that may exist a catchy tightrope to walk if the company is concerned virtually losing players.