A lot of ad conscious users have been glad to pay the premium price for the Shield because of the ad-free experience. I've had the device for years and this is the first time I've been subjected to ads that I can't remove.
Nvidia had been opting out of this launcher update for at least a year, so they knew it was there.
They may have been less aware of the timing of Google over riding it, but they should have at least known enough to be working on an alternative (assuming they wanted to).
It's Android-based. Of course there was always spyware, and you just learned that the ads can be shoved into your face at a whim. Unless you're tech-incompetent this isn't a big surprise.
I'd be fine if Google just had an opt-out option for these "ads". I can't believe it isn't an option.