Although Xiaomi is already toying with the idea of increasing the prices of its phones, they are still relatively cheap. The Chinese company has always branded itself as an internet company and one way it recoups its revenue is through the MIUI custom ROM. The company serves ads on the app with the rate becoming more intense lately. Xiaomi even serves adds on its music app and other aspects of the custom ROM.
Xiaomi’s Product director and MIUI Experience General Manager recently floated a feedback forum on Weibo where he asked fans to mention the things they would like to see on MIUI. He also asked that they mention what they consider as a snag on the custom ROM. Among the responses, one that stood out was the one asking that Xaomi include a feature to turn of the ads. In response, the Xiaomi exec hinted that the company will include such feature but it would take some time. 
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Allowing users to turn off the advertisement on MIUI will be counterproductive for Xiaomi as it stands presently. This is because MIUI is one of Xiaomi’s major cash cow and advertisement is the major revenue source from MIUI. Since the MIUI head has agreed that the company will rectify the way ads are being served, it could be that the company is planning to increase its revenue from smartphones by increasing the unit prices. That seems to be the most feasible alternative revenue source if the revenue from MIUI ads drops. Sure, if Xaomi includes a feature to turn off adverts, most users will use it and that will translate to a revenue loss of billions of dollars. So, we don’t see Xiaomi taking any action on that anytime soon. Perhaps, in the short term, the company could reduce the placement.
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