Remember the ad-free days of the Internet, So do AdTrap inventors

A device that nabs online ads before they hit Internet-connected devices was born from waxing about the Internet's infancy, AdTrap's California inventors say. AdTrap allows users to access to the Internet and gives them freedom to surf the Web without those pesky ads, CNN reported Sunday. It was a discussion about simpler times on the Internet that led to AdTrap's development, inventors Chad Russell and Charles Butkus said. "It was page, text and pictures -- and that's it," Russell said of the Internet of old -- sans ads. So, Russell and Butkus embarked on restoring the past and -- viola! -- AdTrap was born and now grows in Palo Alto, Calif. The company's motto: "The Internet is yours again." While there are software and browser plug-ins that block online advertisements, they're limited to the individual device or the specific browser while AdTrap intercepts the ads before they reach any device on a network, CNN said. AdTrap, a hardware solution in white rectangular box that resembles a router, costs about $139. Interest and enthusiasm for Russell and Butkus' idea turned into $200,000, raised through a 30-day Kickstarter crowdsourcing campaign earlier this year and began shipping in August, CNN said. "I think it speaks to the mindset of people right now of their experience on the Internet," Russell said. But ads also allow websites to offer content free and devices like AdTrap could put that business model at risk -- and possibly spell legal woes for Russell and Butkus or other similar entrepreneurs, CNN said. Russell and Butkus said they've already retained a law firm, just in case.