YouTube Caught Drowning Viewers in Unskippable Ads
upstart writes:
YouTube caught drowning viewers in unskippable ads:
YouTube has been serving viewers unskippable ads for years, but recent reports claim that they are becoming longer and more frequent.
Complaining about YouTube ads is a fairly common practice online, but the volume of those complaints has been ticking up lately. For example, last week, a user on Twitter complained to the official YouTube account about the frequency of ads:
YouTube's support team responded, explaining that "this may happen with a certain type of ad format called bumper ads, since they're only up to 6 seconds long." They also suggested that the user send feedback via YouTube's feedback tool.
The implication seems to be that because the bumper ads last six seconds or less, YouTube can force you to watch several of them in a row. Only longer ads, typically those that last 15 to 30 seconds or more, give viewers the option to skip.
[...] As it turns out, this was really an experiment that has since concluded. Here's the statement a YouTube spokesperson sent 9to5Google on Friday:
At YouTube, we're focused on helping brands connect with audiences around the world, and we're always testing new ways to surface ads that enhance the viewer experience. We ran a small experiment globally that served multiple ads in an ad pod when viewers watched longer videos on connected TVs. The goal is to build a better experience for viewers by reducing ad breaks. We have concluded this small experiment.
Read more of this story at SoylentNews.