YouTube ads are coming for your paused videos, adding yet another monetisation method to the already bloated video social media site.
In the past few years, Google has massively increased the number of ads on the YouTube platform to increase profit. Alongside the ad-free YouTube Premium subscription, the platform is continuing to expand its monetisation efforts.
In parent company Alphabet’s latest earnings call, Google SVP Philipp Schindler revealed that paused videos will soon show advertisements for all users. Currently, trials are still being experimented with at the company but early impressions are “strong”.
“In Q1, we saw strong traction from the introduction of a pause ads pilot on connected TVs, a new non-interruptive ad format that appears when users pause their organic content,” Schindler told investors, via Android Authority.
The Google SVP continued to explain that the new ad structure is “commanding premium pricing from advertisers”. This means that advertisers will likely be charged extra for showing their products on your paused TV, PC or phone.
There’s currently no details on when pause screen adverts are coming to YouTube or how exactly they will be implemented. We don’t know if pause screen ads will be still images, videos or even if they’ll be muted when they play. (We certainly hope they will be!)
It does seem clear that the new YouTube adverts will first be introduced to SmartTVs where these adverts will likely get the most attention. However, if successful, this method of advertising will undoubtedly be moved into other platforms. Hey, at least you don’t have to worry about pause ads on the Apple Vision Pro YouTube experience!
Over the past few years, YouTube has been heavily criticized for constant changes to its advertising system as well as features like auto-pause and errors with YouTube watch history. However, as an overwhelmingly massive platform that also pays creators, it’s not surprising that Google would need to increase ads to keep investors happy.
With independent groups like Rooster Teeth shutting down in the face of advertiser changes and an evolving internet, it’s a miracle that YouTube is here to stay.