I understand that if you browse the site without being logged in, steemit shows indeed ads - I've tested it a few days ago and, lo' and behold, it was true! As soon as I logged out, the right-side bar started displaying location-related ads (in my case, for Luxembourg banks ...)
Can't say if that is still the case or was just a limited test, I seldom browse without being logged in
It seems it was/is a test...