The default UA has been updated, and it now includes a placeholder token for
hardware ID (see
http://bazaar.launchpad.net/~phablet-team/webbrowser-app/trunk/view/head:/src/Ubuntu/Components/Extras/Browser/UserAgent02.qml
for details). Note that by default this token is empty, I suppose it will
customized by OEMs shipping actual devices.
I’m marking the bug fixed, feel free to re-open to continue the discussion or
if you feel that this implementation is not enough to address the original
issue.
** Changed in: webbrowser-app
Status: Confirmed => Fix Released
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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1252407
Title:
Cannot identify device via proposed user agent string
Status in Web Browser App:
Fix Released
Bug description:
Issue: the proposed user agent string structure provides no support
for inclusion of device model information.
While recognising that this may have been debated to some extent as
part of https://bugs.launchpad.net/webbrowser-app/+bug/1179596, it may
be worth flagging some impacts of this. The usage of user agent
parsing solutions is far wider in application than just the serving of
content. Disclaimer: I work for dotMobi, who provide both server and
client side device awareness capabilities, among other offerings.
Content serving
While RWD is seen as a good approach to serving web content across different
device types, most leading organisations use a combination of server side and
client side techniques to optimise performance and tailor first delivery
according to the device capability (RESS is growing rapidly). Knowing the
device capabilities before serving content is a key part of this. (Google serve
a 4kB page to a low end phone, and a 600kB page to a high end phone.
http://prism.mobiforge.com/?url=google.com. Extreme example, but not isolated
by any means)
Web analytics
Businesses are unable to identify which devices are visiting their websites,
and accordingly are unable to optimise content for them. Where multiple devices
are indistinguishable, the relative market penetration (or usage on the web) of
one device model over another is unknown, impacting planning and business
decision-making.
Advertising
The serving of ads to non-desktop devices is based on server side device
identification. Both the targeting of ads, and the placement of correctly sized
ads, are driven by server side identification of the device. Many businesses
are entirely dependent on advertising for their business model, and mobile
operators for example like to be able to provide upgrade offers to subscribers
using less capable devices. With the proposed Ubuntu OS UA, this is no longer
possible, since all devices appear identical on the server side.
Emerging device categories
Automotive manufacturers are embedding browsers into vehicles. A requirement
they have is that web servers are aware that the context is specifically
automotive, hence mobile/tablet is insufficient. They also want to know the
model in their analytics reports. Needless to say, the number of different
devices in which browsers are being embedded is growing rapidly. Should a TV be
served mobile or tablet content? [Possibly it is not intended that the Ubuntu
OS is for use in devices other than mobile phones and tablets]
Finally, it is worth noting that Mozilla support inclusion of device
identifying information in their UAs, although it is not their recommendation.
https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Gecko_user_agent_string_reference#Mobile_and_Tablet_indicators
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