YouTube is bringing 30-second unskippable ads to TVs

[midian182]

A hot potato: Do you like watching YouTube on your smart TV? Unfortunately, the experience will soon become less enjoyable. The company has announced that it will add unskippable 30-second ads to its top-performing content when watched on connected televisions

During the annual YouTube Brandcast event yesterday, the Google-owned company said that instead of seeing two 15-second ads consecutively, TV viewers will see a single 30-second ad. The Verge writes that these "non-skips" will appear on YouTube Select content, its advertising platform that targets the top 5% of YouTube videos.

YouTube executives said more than 150 million unique viewers in the US watched YouTube and YouTube TV on televisions for the month of December 2022, according to Nielsen estimates. It's the most-watched service on TV screens in the US across both streaming platforms and traditional TV networks, which is why the company wants to introduce longer ads (the 15-second ads will be sticking around, too).

"More and more, viewers are tuning into YouTube on the biggest screen in their home," said YouTube CEO Neal Mohan. "Viewers – especially younger viewers – no longer make a distinction between the kind of content they're watching."

Courtesy of adweek

In addition to the 30-second unskippable ads, the company said it will start testing "Pause Experiences" (above) for YouTube on TVs. These will show ads to viewers whenever they pause a video, similar to the pause ads Hulu debuted four years ago.

There's no word on when YouTube's 30-second/pause ads will start rolling out to smart televisions. But the news is certainly going to upset the millions of people who watch the service on connected TVs.

Google pushing harder on the ad front comes as little surprise. The company brought in $29.2 billion from ad revenue in 2022, an increase from the $28.8 billion it generated the year before, making up over 11% of Google's annual revenue. However, the $7.96 billion that came from ads in the fourth quarter of 2022 was down almost 8% year-on-year as the whole online advertising industry slumped.

In related news, it was recently discovered that Google is experimenting with a feature that shows a pop-up warning to anyone using an ad-blocker.

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/98735-youtube-bringing-30-second-unskippable-ads-tvs.html

 

[ScottSoapbox]

It’s weird that the screen matters. I suppose they are more afraid people will click away on a phone or computer? But I just look at my phone during ads on a TV so...

 

[MarkHughes]

I once watched a 10 minute youtube video on my TV, 2 ads, then 2 more in the middle then 2 more just seconds from the end, I switched it off and have never gone back. That was just too much. So I avoid that site altogether now where I can.

 

[wiyosaya]

They should call this "Google Greed".

To me, this sounds like Google jumping on what it thinks is another fad in which all they see is the "opportunity for profit" much like all these companies that jumped on streaming. I think someone needs to remind Google how the streaming industry is doing given that all the content providers are not making as much as they would like and are not growing their subscribers. My bet is that there will be a significant number of people who will no longer watch this crap.

Google thinks it can just exploit its users and data. My bet, they have a lesson coming to them in the near future.

 

[dangh]

Harvest time!
That's what monopoly do. Which reminds me, when I get my next TV I need to triple check if have some integrated ads in there.
I do not mind yt premium, but not for a price of Disney plus. I do not believe I need to pay 10 bucks a month to make up for their loses of not showing me ads. If they would make 10 bucks monthly per person on ads just on yt then they would be surely be biggest company in the world... so you just getting shaved.

 

[wiyosaya]

Harvest time!
Which reminds me, when I get my next TV I need to triple check if have some integrated ads in there.

My solution is to use my "TV" only as a monitor for my HTPC.

 

[wiyosaya]

I once watched a 10 minute youtube video on my TV, 2 ads, then 2 more in the middle then 2 more just seconds from the end, I switched it off and have never gone back. That was just too much. So I avoid that site altogether now where I can.

I've been avoiding Google for years and have not missed it.

 

[fore1gn]

It’s weird that the screen matters. I suppose they are more afraid people will click away on a phone or computer? But I just look at my phone during ads on a TV so...

The screen matters probably because the videos on 4K TVs nowadays default to 4K, which is a lot of very expensive bandwidth. With how smart TVs are becoming more and more common, YouTube is probably feeling the 4K video bandwidth strain. They've also been trying quite a lot to get more people subbed to YT Premium ("enhanced" 1080p mode, locking 4K behind YT Premium), and not related to that they've also tried to automatically lower phone users' resolutions, hide the resolution settings behind more clicks in the apps etc. They're doing a lot to lower the bandwidth, and I believe this plays into their logic

 

[MarkHughes]

I've been avoiding Google for years and have not missed it.

I am heading the same way, I only currently use gmail, maps and documents. I keep looking at alternatives.

 

[hahahanoobs]

"non-skips" will appear on YouTube Select content, its advertising platform that targets the top 5% of YouTube videos.

No big deal then.

 

[Neatfeatguy]

I'm so glad I'm not hooked on stupid youtube or anything else like that. At least Netflix hasn't brought on ads (yet), so I can still watch stuff there (what little I do use it these days) without being harassed by ads.

For example, I used to watch a few shows on the History streaming channel, but I got tired of the forced ads. Sometimes you got lucky and it was just 1 or 2 ads for a total of 20-30 seconds. No big deal, but many times you'd get about 10 minutes into a show and when the ads came up it was 1 of 8. Who the hel| thought it was okay to drop 8 ads in a row? I'm not sitting through upwards of 5 minutes of ads to watch a show. I can't do it anymore, I'm tired of ads, most are so mind numbingly bad that I will just stop watching all together and turn the TV off and find something else to do. It's been years since I've visited the History channel and I don't miss it.

I'm content just rewatching movies and shows I've got on my plex server over having to suffer through a lot of bad entertainment being passed off as quality stuff or ads. 1000+ movies and 36+ full tv series on my plex server, I've got a lot to keep me entertained and I can do all without ads. In fact, I may just start re-watching X-Files again, ad free.

 

[magisys]

Lucky me that my tv is not smart anymore, but only a screen for my pc that is powerful and enough capable to block all the marketing crapware that pollutes the internet today.

 

[wiyosaya]

I am heading the same way, I only currently use gmail, maps and documents. I keep looking at alternatives.

Personally, I pay for e-mail, maps, and documents - though I refuse to store any documents in the cloud. I figure paying for stuff is far better than being constantly spied on. I highly doubt that gmail does not scan all e-mail, nor does yahoo.

For e-mail, I use https://runbox.com/ which is based in Norway and is subject to GDPR. Though I am a US citizen. Its $20/year. I also anonymize most of my e-mail through https://sneakemail.com which is $36/year. IMO, both are small prices to pay for the added privacy. Runbox lets me collect e-mail from other accounts, too, although, I don't use any other accounts for my general e-mail usage.

For maps, I use https://apps.apple.com/us/app/igo-navigation/id959927714 There's an android version of it, too. I bought the North American maps which cover the US and Canada and all the maps I downloaded to my iPad mini 6. I have my suspicions that its likely that the app is "spying on me" but the package is exactly what I need and I have been using one of the company's nav apps for years. I like the fact that I can bring up a map, point to a place on the map, and say "route me to here." It also allows vehicle/pedestrian route choices, and no WiFi/mobile data needed.

For docs, I use the Corel WordPerfect suite. I've been using WordPerfect since the DOS days - version 5.0 - and IMO, you cannot make a better choice for a Word Processor. I've taken advantage of their various upgrade offers through the years which, IMO, were bargains.

 

[Lew Zealand]

"it will add unskippable 30-second ads to its top-performing content when watched on connected televisions"

Oh, no worries then as the most popular stuff on YT is uninteresting stuff. But of course this is just the foot in the door.

This disease will spread.

 

[AndreV]

I am heading the same way, I only currently use gmail, maps and documents. I keep looking at alternatives.

proton or tutanota for email, here WeGo or Petal Maps for maps, as for documents...you could buy a 5watts micro PC/thin client and use it as a 24/7 online server, this way only you have the access to your documents.

 

[scavengerspc]

Personally, I pay for e-mail, maps, and documents - though I refuse to store any documents in the cloud. I figure paying for stuff is far better than being constantly spied on. I highly doubt that gmail does not scan all e-mail, nor does yahoo.

For e-mail, I use https://runbox.com/ which is based in Norway and is subject to GDPR. Though I am a US citizen. Its $20/year. I also anonymize most of my e-mail through https://sneakemail.com which is $36/year. IMO, both are small prices to pay for the added privacy. Runbox lets me collect e-mail from other accounts, too, although, I don't use any other accounts for my general e-mail usage.

For maps, I use https://apps.apple.com/us/app/igo-navigation/id959927714 There's an android version of it, too. I bought the North American maps which cover the US and Canada and all the maps I downloaded to my iPad mini 6. I have my suspicions that its likely that the app is "spying on me" but the package is exactly what I need and I have been using one of the company's nav apps for years. I like the fact that I can bring up a map, point to a place on the map, and say "route me to here." It also allows vehicle/pedestrian route choices, and no WiFi/mobile data needed.

For docs, I use the Corel WordPerfect suite. I've been using WordPerfect since the DOS days - version 5.0 - and IMO, you cannot make a better choice for a Word Processor. I've taken advantage of their various upgrade offers through the years which, IMO, were bargains.

What he said!

Except I pay for mail.com. Still in the top of secure email services and the trainable spam filter
actually works once figured out.

 

[Hodor]

Every time YT shows an ad, send email to Google saying "You suck" and then go to your favorite social network and tell everyone to stop using YT. The more ads, the more posts.

 

[daffy duck]

I got so sick of YT ads on my Smart TV, I just watch YT on Firefox on my PC now, no ads. The ads are already out of control, now to make them unskippable after say 10s is BS. How much ad revenue will you get from no one watching your crap at all mor0ns.

 

[saladbarsmash]

They should call this "Google Greed".

To me, this sounds like Google jumping on what it thinks is another fad in which all they see is the "opportunity for profit" much like all these companies that jumped on streaming. I think someone needs to remind Google how the streaming industry is doing given that all the content providers are not making as much as they would like and are not growing their subscribers. My bet is that there will be a significant number of people who will no longer watch this crap.

Google thinks it can just exploit its users and data. My bet, they have a lesson coming to them in the near future.

Let's not forget about Google blocking people using AdBlock. They are the least trustworthy company in America (more than FB and Twitter).

 

[DEMinSoCal]

Lucky me that my tv is not smart anymore, but only a screen for my pc that is powerful and enough capable to block all the marketing crapware that pollutes the internet today.

You mean all that "marketing crapware" that actually pays for the content on the internet so you don't have to? What's next? No one watches ads so services are no longer free and everyone complains they have to pay?

 

[DEMinSoCal]

Every time YT shows an ad, send email to Google saying "You suck" and then go to your favorite social network and tell everyone to stop using YT. The more ads, the more posts.

So who pays to keep YT running if there were no ads? Just curious if Google is supposed to provide YT for free (not exactly Business 101) so everyone gets an ad-free experience for free?

 

[Ecurb]

My 4K OLED Samsung TV HDMIs have Amazon TV, Google TV and HTPC (Win 8.1 WMC with 4x Ceton cable tuners). I don’t connect the TV directly to the internet nor use its smart TV apps. My concern is future TVs will required an internet connection.

On occasion I’ll look at what’s on cable, but in every case as soon as ads appear I turn it off (we record a lot where we can skip ads). I can no longer imagine watching ad driven streaming media (use PiHole to block web ads on my home network). I will pay for streaming without ads, but I fear it will go the way of cable and they’ll try to lock us in and then crank up the prices.

I’ll continue to buy favorite movies and series and use Emby to organize and stream them, as I don’t trust any of the streaming services in the long run.

 

[Underdog]

I decided years ago not to have a "smart" TV. There is no way I want a TV, or Alexa, or any other appliance spying on me and reporting to X number of unknown entities via the internet. They've got a nerve expecting me to pay for these not so covert surveillance devices. I only own a cell phone to receive occasional "security" codes by text insisted on by some banks and utilities and it is only switched on when I am expecting a code. It never leaves the house so it doesn't get tracked for more than a few feet in the same room.
I am painfully aware that I am still being spied upon somehow but there is no reason I have to make it easier for "them".

 

[DEMinSoCal]

I decided years ago not to have a "smart" TV. There is no way I want a TV, or Alexa, or any other appliance spying on me and reporting to X number of unknown entities via the internet. They've got a nerve expecting me to pay for these not so covert surveillance devices. I only own a cell phone to receive occasional "security" codes by text insisted on by some banks and utilities and it is only switched on when I am expecting a code. It never leaves the house so it doesn't get tracked for than a few feet in the same room.
I am painfully aware that I am still being spied upon somehow but there is no reason I have to make it easier for "them".

Don't go outside. There are cameras everywhere spying on you.
Curious what you're doing that you are so concerned/obsessed that someone is watching you?
You realize even posting in this forum that there is tons of data that was collected about you?

 

[nassux]

These non stop ponzi schemes are why I allegedly pirate everything. the non stop slapping of price hikes might result in $85 a month for youtube tv by 2035 smh