How to allow advertising in games on Android: methods and settings

Lack of advertisements in free games on Android often prevents you from receiving in-game currency and bonuses, which is usually caused by an advertising ID reset, tracking restrictions enabled, or active ad blockers. To return the ability to watch videos and earn rewards, you need to check your system privacy settings, manage your advertising ID, and disable third-party applications that intercept traffic.

In this article, we will analyze in detail the mechanisms of how advertising networks work on mobile devices and provide step-by-step guide on how to return the functionality. You don't need to be a coding expert to fix the situation, but understanding the basic principles of how it works will be helpful. Google Play Services will be useful.

The situation where the game says “no ads available” can be caused by both software limitations and the actions of the user in the past. We will look at all possible scenarios, from simple menu switches to more complex manipulations with network settings.

Checking ad personalization settings

The first step in solving the problem is to check the global privacy settings in the Android system. Google gives users the ability to limit the use of their data for targeted advertising, and if this feature is enabled, many ad networks may not display content correctly.

You need to go to the settings section of your device. The path may vary slightly depending on the shell manufacturer, but the logic remains the same. Usually you need to find an item related to Google or security.

In the menu that opens, find the section Advertising. Here you will see a toggle for “Turn off ad personalization.” If it is active (lit blue or green), advertising algorithms cannot find relevant content, which often leads to empty slots in games.

⚠️ Attention: Disabling personalization does not remove advertising completely, but makes it less relevant. For games that require you to watch videos for rewards, it is better to leave this option enabled.

Also in this menu, the “Reset Advertising ID” button is often available. Clicking on it generates a new random number that advertisers use for tracking. This action can help if the old identifier is blacklisted due to tracking errors.

Managing permissions for specific applications

Often the problem does not lie in global ones settings, but in individual permissions issued to a specific game. Modern versions of Android allow you to flexibly control application access to various device functions, and an accidental ban can block the loading of media content.

Go to Settings → Applications and find the desired game in the list. Click on it to open the application information page. Next, select the section Permissions.

Make sure that the game has access to the Internet (although this item is often hidden in the general network settings) and, more importantly, permission to display on top of other windows or access to the device ID. Some advertising SDKs require access to phone state to initialize correctly.

• 📱 Check to see if there is a background data transfer limit for this app.
• 🌐 Make sure that "Mobile data and Wi-Fi" is set to allow unlimited data consumption.
• 🔒 If the game asks you to access storage or advertising locations, please agree.

If you recently updated your operating system, some permissions may have been reset to default for purposes of security. Carefully review the list and restore all necessary rights.

Impact of blockers advertising and DNS

One of the most common reasons for the lack of advertising is the use of system blockers or setting up a private DNS. Users often install such solutions to remove banners in the browser, not realizing that this also blocks in-game advertising.

Check your connection settings. Go to Settings → Network and Internet → Private DNS. If the address of a third-party server is registered there (for example, dns.adguard.com), it will block all advertising requests at the network level.

Settings: Private DNS
Current value: dns.adguard.com (Blocks ads)
Recommended value: Auto or Disabled

Switch the mode to “Auto” or “Disabled” to allow advertising requests to pass through. After doing this, be sure to reboot your device to reset the DNS cache.

⚠️ Note: Changing DNS settings will affect all applications on the device. Advertising will appear not only in games, but also in the browser and other services.

Also check for installed applications such as AdBlock, Lucky Patcher or similar utilities. If they are active, they can infiltrate the gameplay and cut out advertising modules. Temporarily disable or remove such apps to check.

Why do blockers interfere with games?

Most free games exist through advertising integrations. The blocker interrupts the connection with the advertising server, the game receives an error code and does not award a reward, considering that the user did not finish watching the video.

Resetting Google Play Services data

Google Play Services are the foundation for the operation of most advertising networks on Android. If their cache contains errors or outdated data, the ad serving mechanism may fail. Clearing the data of this system component often solves the problem.

This procedure is safe and will not delete your personal files, contacts, or installed applications. It will only reset the settings of Google services to factory values, forcing them to re-sync with the server.

Follow these steps:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Show all applications.
2. Find in the list Google Play Services (Google Play Services).
3. Go to the section Storage.
4. Press the button Clear cacheand then Clear all data or Manage space → Clear all data.

After performing these steps, the device may “think” a little the next time it is unlocked, as services will restore background processes. Wait for optimization to complete before starting the game.

Action	Risk of data loss	Efficiency
Clear cache	No	Low
Resetting service data	No (settings only)	High
Reinstalling the game	Possible (without cloud)	Average

Checking the date, time and region

Advertising networks are extremely sensitive to time desynchronization. If the clock on your device is slow or fast, even by a few minutes, security certificates (SSL) may not be validated and the connection to the ad server will be lost.

Make sure that the “Use network time” option is turned on in your date and time settings. This will ensure that your device is synced to the atomic clock via your carrier or Wi-Fi.

It's also worth checking your Google account region. Some advertisers only show content to certain geographic areas. If you use a VPN, try disabling it or changing the server to a country that corresponds to your real location.

An incorrect region may lead to the fact that there are simply no suitable advertising campaigns for your IP address. In this case, the game will report that there are no available ads.

Reinstalling the application and updating components

If The software settings are fine, the problem may lie in corrupted files of the game itself. Over time, configuration files can become corrupted, especially after unsuccessful updates or power failures.

Try deleting the game and installing it again from the official store Google Play. Before deleting, make sure that your progress is saved in the cloud (via Google Play Games or a social network account) so as not to lose your achievements.

Also check for updates for the component Android System WebView. This system element is responsible for displaying web content within applications, including many modern video advertising formats. An outdated version of WebView may not render commercials correctly.

⚠️ Attention: When reinstalling the game, progress may be lost if the account has not been linked. Always check for the “Login” button or cloud icon in the game menu before deleting.

Update the application itself to the latest version. Developers often release patches to improve compatibility with new versions of ad SDKs. Go to the application store, find the game and click “Update” if the button is active.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

Why didn’t advertising appear immediately after resetting the identifier?

Advertising networks take time (from 15 minutes to 24 hours) to index the new identifier and selection of relevant campaigns for your profile. Also try clearing the cache of the game itself in the application settings.

Does the power saving mode affect the display of advertising?

Yes, in the strict power saving mode, the system can limit the background network activity of applications. This prevents the ad module from loading the video before you click the watch button. Disable power saving for the game.

Is it possible to allow advertising in only one game?

Global advertising settings (personalization) are applied to all applications at once. However, you can manage network access for each application separately in the Android settings, allowing the Internet only for the desired game, but this does not guarantee the display of advertising if the global ID is reset.

What to do if it says “advertising loading error”?

This often indicates a problem with the Internet connection or blocking at the ISP/DNS level. Try switching from Wi-Fi to mobile data or vice versa. Also check if your antivirus is blocking the connection.