YouTube is expanding its ad formats to offer advertisers unskippable 30-second videos on TV devices. Prior to this, users could skip ads after 5 seconds of viewing. Now longer videos will be displayed instead of two consecutive 15-second promotional videos.
YouTube Select, a dedicated advertising platform, will provide access to 30-second ads to advertisers who focus on the top five percent of content on YouTube.
YouTube claims that 70 percent of YouTube Select views happen on TV devices, making it the perfect platform to serve longer ads.
Ad banners during pause
YouTube also announced the launch of a test project in which ads will be displayed when a viewer pauses a video on their TV, notes NIX Solutions.
This feature is reminiscent of the commercial break introduced a few years ago on the streaming service Hulu. YouTube called this feature “pause”.
Paused banner ads will appear around the video and can be removed by clicking the “dismiss” button. YouTube did not specify the exact date of implementation of these changes – 30-second non-skippable ads and ads on pause.
YouTube recently launched an experiment that prevents users from viewing videos using ad blockers in their browsers.