Apple Popup Ads Inside Apps Upsetting Older iPhone Users
A number of Apple users with previous generation iPhones are reporting their frustration at the appearance of popup ads for the iPhone 6s. These aren't spammy ads appearing in Safari or other browsers, where one would expect popups, rather they're directly from Apple and are showing up in first-party apps like the App Store. Users have posted on both Twitter and Reddit about full-screen displays that encourage them to upgrade or find out more about the iPhone 6s.
Those with an iPhone 5s or earlier have said that upon opening the App Store, they are greeted with the popup, which features the iPhone 6s under a "Ridiculously Powerful" slogan, with the options of "learn more" and "upgrade now" being presented front and center, while the "skip" button is in the upper right.
These popups are not appearing in the actual Apple Store app, which some users have said would be understandable, but in the App Store, when they are trying to do something other than shopping, like update installed apps. Choosing to learn more or upgrade on the ad does redirect users over to the Apple Store app.
The reason for the controversy is because this is the first time that Apple has resorted to a full-screen ad that appears without interaction, interrupting whatever task is being done. It's a much more aggressive form of marketing than in the past, when Apple has used ignorable banner ads or product-focused categories of apps in the Featured rotations.
The code for the ads seems to have been included with the recent iOS 9.2 update, which is why users haven't experienced before now. It's understandable why some iPhone users would be frustrated at this, especially if they're happy with the device they already have.