Marissa Mayer: 'Ads make content better'

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer thinks the Internet is a lot worse without ads.

"I really believe that commercials and ads make content better. The experience on the Web [without ads] becomes a lot less rich in my experience. I personally think it is a mistake," Mayer said during a keynote session at the Interactive Advertising Bureau's annual conference, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Mayer's comments came in response to a question about Yahoo's response to software that lets you block ads on the web - a hot-button issue among news outlets since Apple introduced support for ad-blocking tools in the Safari mobile browser in iOS 9, the most recent update to the iPhone and iPad operating system.

Like many online publishers, Yahoo's business model is largely ad-supported across all of its services, including in its online video and digital news businesses. Ad blockers, which prevent advertisements from loading, present an imminent threat to digital media companies.

But Mayer thinks that people really enjoy watching ads, and that they play a crucial role in the development of the Internet.

"It is really important to keep that ecosystem vibrant. We need to make sure we have business models that work…I just think it makes the Internet better," Mayer said.

Still, Yahoo says that online advertising can be improved, especially with more tools that let people opt out of letting advertisers track their movements online.

Plus, she says that the future largely rests upon native advertisements - ads that look like content.