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By Rachael O'Connor
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Internet users have raged against the introduction of a new advertising experience on YouTube, complaining the adverts are already "awful."
A report from Google, which bought YouTube in 2006, says that non-skip adverts are now available to brands, with a view to reaching audiences streaming YouTube content on their TVs.
Appealing to brands advertising on YouTube, the report says the non-skip adverts ensure "your message is delivered in its entirety," with Google AI switching up viewers' adverts "between 6-second Bumpers, 15-second standard and 30-second CTV-only non-skippable ad formats." Newsweek has contacted Google for comment on this story.
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"AI-powered precision helps drive greater efficiency across multiple non-skip ad formats, delivering more unique reach and impact compared with manual mixes of single-format campaigns," the report reads.
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The update will mean some adverts that had previously allowed users to skip after a few seconds will now run in full, and only those who subscribe to YouTube Premium will be able to bypass them, according to Dexerto.
Users who watch YouTube on their television set are the focus of the new campaign, as trends have shown people are using the platform on their TVs more regularly than on laptops or smartphones.
The platform also offers YouTube TV—a paid membership offering live TV from major broadcast networks and longer-form original content from YouTube creators—alongside its YouTube Premium service.
Premium is a separate paid membership that bypasses adverts on regular YouTube content, but adverts still appear on YouTube TV regardless of whether someone has a subscription to Premium, according to Google.
Commentators were frustrated by the news, with one post shared to Reddit's r/technology sub by user u/IndicaOatmeal racking up more than 25,000 upvotes. One commenter wrote: "I watched a video without ad blocking the other day and it was horrible. Every 5 minutes there were 2 ads. It was horrible."
Another posted: "They play ads between the setup and the punch line of jokes. FFS [for f***'s sake]. It's awful.
"At least TV used to have a natural flow. Now YouTube decides it's a good idea to play a 9-minute long ad mid-joke that you can skip after 4 seconds. But if you don't the ad will play for NINE MINUTES."
One user said the move was "about to reduce the time I spend watching YouTube," but added: "I guess it will be good for my health."
And another added: "Nowadays, I just watch significantly less YouTube. Even the 'premium lite' plan isn't worth it to me. I have enough content available to me that I don't need another subscription program."
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