Business of Apps Podcast #256: Ad quality is hurting retention & app revenue with Alex Yerukhimovich, General Manager at AppHarbr
For many app teams, ads are treated as a necessary tradeoff — something you accept in exchange for revenue. But ad quality isn’t just an ad ops issue. It directly shapes user experience, retention, and how people perceive your app.
In this episode, we’re sharing an App Talks interview where David Murphy speaks with Alex Yerukhimovich, General Manager at AppHarbr. Alex breaks down what ad quality really means in practice, why the problem is getting worse, and how bad ads can quietly undermine performance — through shorter sessions, higher churn, and even one-star reviews that impact store visibility.
From disruptive ad behaviour to scams and deceptive creatives, this conversation is a practical look at why publishers need more transparency and more control over what gets served inside their apps.
Today’s topics include:-
Ad quality defined: why users see ads as part of the app experience — and blame publishers for what they see
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The three major categories of “bad ads”: inappropriate content, disruptive behavior, and malvertising scams
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Why ad quality is becoming a bigger problem outside gaming, especially for apps built on long-term retention
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How bad ads damage monetization and growth: shorter sessions, uninstalls, churn, and one-star reviews that affect store visibility
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What publishers can do about it: transparency, proactive enforcement, and real-time control instead of relying on ad networks to fix issues
“Users associate any bad experience within the app with the app itself.”
“If the ads in your app are bad for your users, your app is bad.”
“Ad quality in the industry deteriorates… it’s getting worse and it requires active approach to solve it.”
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