Bad news for YouTube TV: Unskippable ads are coming
YouTube has announced its new "frustrating" feature for TV users. Soon, you will be forced to watch 30-second ads before you start a video. Besides, the company has also decided to show ads when a video is paused.
The company recently held an event named YouTube Brandcast for advertisers and brands. During the event, the video-streaming platform announced its new ad policy to bring 30-second unskippable videos for YouTube TV users.
"First, we’re bringing 30 second non-skips to YouTube Select on CTV. We know that running longer-form creative on the big screen aligns with your objectives, and allows for richer storytelling. YouTube Select is now landing over 70% of impressions on the TV screen, so we’re making it easier for you to use existing assets in front of the most-streamed content. This format also seamlessly fits into what viewers already expect and experience on the big screen. Instead of seeing two :15 ads consecutively, they'll see one :30 ad," said the company.
If you watch YouTube on your TV, the new 30-second ad policy might push you to get a paid subscription. Besides, YouTube has also announced that it will show more ads when a user pauses a video. The ads will be available to advertisers through YouTube Select. YouTube said that 70% of the impressions came from TV, and that is why the company brought these ads to television.
YouTube TV prices went up a while ago
YouTube also increased its TV subscription prices a couple of months ago, and it more than doubled in price compared to its initial launch. YouTube TV's monthly fee has been raised to $72.99/mo from $64.99/mo. The 4K Plus add-on, on the other hand, is now $9.99/mo, which is 50% cheaper than the prior $19.99/mo pricing.
YouTube TV debuted in 2017 with a monthly subscription fee of $35. It increased from $50 to $64.99 in 2020, following a mid-increase. The service's price has more than quadrupled since its initial proposal. As the price has progressively climbed over time, it appears that it will continue to rise in the future.
Read also: How to block ads on YouTube app: iPhone, Android
After the price increase, the new ad policy is the second frustrating thing for free users. YouTube wants people to subscribe and pay a monthly fee and that is clearly one of the reasons of this ad policy update.
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OK, some more notes:
-I admit I misread this article. It appears to be for YT TV and I thought it was just normal YT.
-I still think we should support alternatives.
-I checked out some of these alts w/mixed results. Some don’t allow comments. I am not an expert on any of this.
—Vimeo is alright. Just alright. UI was meh. Like all these sites, it just doesn’t have the content of the main site we are trying to avoid. But that is the point. If we use it, they will come. It may be an option if it gets more love?
—Odysee seemed pretty good on a quick check. As in, the UI seemed familiar, if a little “low resolution”. I may try it some more. While I am really into free speech, I am not quite a free speech absolutist. This is a free speech absolutist site. So there is that. Anything put up there will be there basically forever, unless it is deemed illegal. I am a centrist and get frustrated with the right and the left energizing each other.
—Dailymotion: Doesn’t seem to allow comments.
—TikTok doesn’t get mentioned here. Obviously it is short format. I am not interested in it, but I think it has become somewhat of an alt to YT for some. Many other content venues are trying to copy this model. I have some strong opinions about it I will not go into here.
The challenge remains. Don’t give up. There are obvious reasons that YT is the leader, but I see this as a “journey, not a destination” thing. And be nice to each other.
Hands up everyone who ever bought anything because they saw it in a youtube ad…
It’s amazing that the only way to monetize youtube content is from ads that do not work. It’s not a functioning ad if one in 2 billion people buys your advertised product/service. But your company will be hated, that’s for sure.
Google is underestimating people, or rather overestimating itself. If you go full on ads, people WILL leave. They won’t watch youtube videos. Something else will come along in notime, where people will flock to. Probably somekind of torrent-based thing that will filter out the ads and serve you the videos anyway. Kinda like a 30 second suspended youtube =) automagically forwarded to the content, for your viewing pleasure. There will also be a button that blocks content creators who place ads smack right in the middle of their videos too. They shall be punished severly. Mediawhores.
> somekind of torrent-based thing
That is just piracy with a different name :p. And if this stuff from companies keeps happening, piracy will get a rebound.
Odysee is probably the most viable alternative
I’ve had a look at ‘Odysee’ and a look only when I discovered that registration was required to set a user’s options (mainly, in my case, video quality which is adjustable otherwise only when viewing the video, by default set at max. 720p, and modification not memorized). Globally not fond of it. Meant to bring winds of freedom, and that may be perceived by some video authors as well as by some viewers as a haven of extremist narrations :
Excerpt from [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/LBRY] :
“As of April 2021, Odysee hosted 10 million videos, the most-viewed of which was a video challenging the safety of COVID-19 vaccines. A May 2021 report by The Guardian found “scores of extremist videos” on the Odysee platform that promoted antisemitic conspiracy theories, glorified Adolf Hitler and other Nazis, shared COVID-19 misinformation, and depicted meetings and rallies by extremist groups including the white nationalist and antisemitic National Justice party and the neo-Nazi Nordic Resistance Movement”
I’m not challenging anyone’s freedom, only emphasizing on mine which is in such cases to pass my way.
P.S. : searching Wikipedia followed and confirmed my initial feelings about Odysee, they did not precede them.
Hi all! There are many possible sites that could be alternatives.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_video_hosting_services
The reason why I sighted Odysee is because I believe one can sync their youtube channel with it and I guess in theory mirror content to Odysee far easier (this is just speculation on a glancing non subscriber view).
In regards to the content I feel as though people should have the character and strength to take what is useful and subtract what is not without being swayed by propaganda particularly ones that are damaging to others and mankind.
It’s really a slippery slope. If we censor one thing then governments and other entities will see that as a sign to weigh in on things and it will quickly cause many ripple affects across the board which is something we do not want.
I have not come across any such content on Odysee and if a do I simply do not watch it or subscribe to it. I would imagine if there were a competent algorithm that perhaps simply did not promote unpopular videos it would be great or if Odysee allowed greater control by users to filter out such channels, content and such then that would also help as then it would become an individuals choice therefore you are exercising your right to protest and go on with your day.
I have had to walk away from similar discussion regarding another popular website here as many times people have felt that it was some sort of hellscape before a certain someone took over. I simply did not see it because it was not in my view nor in my circle. Things are just as bad now or worse even if you consider the outside aspects of the website and look at the working environment not to mention many other things that are occurring. Trollism at its best really.
Sometimes its a case of “Don’t believe everything you read or hear on the internet” because in many cases your life may depend on it. I prefer to develop myself through a founding set of firm morals, ethics, integrity, understanding and many other such aspects and not every situation is going to be the same so at some point you will have to search yourself to and listen to people to gather a perspective whilst maintaining an open mind but also forming your own opinions based on your character and core values.
Idk I feel like I have gone off topic in some manner.
Rumble is another one that may be a good alternative. The point of me mentioning these websites is not to take it as it is now but to encourage people to flock to it and give it a shot. I mean these websites are only popular with perhaps crude content because there may be more content creators right now on it that lean towards certain subjects but just imagine for a moment there was this huge take over of the website with… idk yoga videos… would be a yoga website… no, it is what we make it and right now we aren’t making much of anything of them really.
On a technical stand point both of these can and should also be improved upon to become the better than youtube to give themselves every advantage they can to succeed.
@Tom Hawack
What a laughable take. Odysee is a free speech platform, you can say pretty much anything there. That’s the point. That may include opinions that agree with you and those that disagree with you, wow. You can find both there. YouTube used to be like that as well when it started, before it became the heavily censored corporate dictatorship that it is now. Wonder how you even survived there back then. Enjoy your Google-owned monopolistic and censored safe space, Tom. I would rather endure opinions existing on a platform that I disagree with, than kissing Google’s monopolistic megacorp ass. But that’s my mentality, not yours (thankfully).
dont mixup opinion with facts.. thats the typical move of tnfoils to upvalue opinions and downvalue facts by setting both in relation. ‘free speech’ on its own, detached from responsibility and consequences is just a cherrypicked, but dangerous nonsense concept for simpleminded, who ignore anything thats coupled to it. Freespeech with a minimum of social competence and responsibility is a good thing, but odysee doesnt seem to be the place for that.
@Anonymous
> dont mixup opinion with facts.
Who defines the facts? Seldom is a topic or answer so clear that only one narrative ought to be followed, that’s called authoritarianism.
> ‘free speech’ on its own, detached from responsibility and consequences is just a cherrypicked, but dangerous nonsense concept for simpleminded
No. What are you talking about? The most harmful speech is banned everywhere anyway, like for example incitement to violence or libel or whatever. But you don’t have to do that to get banned from YouTube. It suffices if you disagree with certain narratives. If you think disagreeing with the narrative ordained from above should have consequences, then you are an authoritarian person.
> Freespeech with a minimum of social competence and responsibility is a good thing, but odysee doesnt seem to be the place for that.
As I said, you have either that, a platform that might contain like 5% of videos with which you disagree (Oh no!), or the heavily censoring corporate monopolist for whom you are the golden goose. It’s not a hard choice for me.
You spend a lot of time chuckling, laughing or, anyway, saying so. Perhaps the assurance of those who know when facing those who disagree and therefor are laughable? Nevertheless preferable to plain insults, unless it be the breath of minds which desperately try to formulate their arrogance in more accetable terms. Not sure but I enjoy politeness in words, even if hypocrite, even if they hide less civilized thoughts.
When it comes to freedom, and in this topic freedom of expression, some may believe that it has limits, self-imposed and if not, sanctioned by censorship.
I don’t agree with censorship but I’d wish that self-imposed limits prevail when assertions concern dramas of the past and unfounded conspiratorial theories of present times. Such a wish applies to those who deliberately lie, of course not to mental deficiencies.
Because I disgree with any form of censorship I wouldn’t even wish that any site propagating ideas which hurt my consciousness be ever banned.
Now, personally, I’ll always prefer — prefer, not impose –any form of business which refuses the worst to any area of freesom which doesn’t on the basis of freedom.
Of course there is no knowledge when knowledge refuses to consider what is contrary to or even different from its very frame, yet I cannot imagine dealing with a devil in order to better know the devil or trying drugs to know what drugs are. Is consciousness a jailer or is it a savior? Up to each of us to decide.
Yes for reading, viewing, hearing as many opinions as possible which leads to facing ourselves with possible contradictions, to questioning ourselves if our beliefs stand in face of counter arguments. I practice this myself quite extensively, be it on the web or in life. yet, without calling for whatever banishment and when it comes to assertions which challenge either my consciousness or my reason when evidence lacks and hate lyricism prevails, then I choose to avoid such areas of what I then consider as non-thoughts.
My answer to Mystique was all in that scope. Freedom for all, freedom of expression, freedom of thoughts and, should the latter defeat the former on the ground of ethics and sanity, freedom of a side-step. That is,if you don’t mind me doing so, me saying so :=)
@Tom Hawack
> You spend a lot of time chuckling, laughing or, anyway, saying so. Perhaps the assurance of those who know when facing those who disagree and therefor are laughable?
I find authoritarian mindsets sad and not laughable, what’s laughable is how you dance around it.
Tom, you talk a lot and you say very little at times. I have highlighted some of your actually striking sentences here:
> When it comes to freedom, and in this topic freedom of expression, some may believe that it has limits, self-imposed and if not, sanctioned by censorship.
Where are those limits? Is it stuff anybody will understand, like incitement to violence for example, or is your “limit” already reached by disagreeing with certain narratives in a polite manner? If the latter, welcome to authoritarianism and safe spaces / filter bubbles.
> Now, personally, I’ll always prefer — prefer, not impose –any form of business which refuses the worst to any area of freesom which doesn’t on the basis of freedom.
The price of using the heavily censored platform is supporting a corporate monopolist, which you always claim you are against. Actually I should link back to your comment whenever you complain about Google’s policies or misbehaviors: “Uhm yes, I am against this, but at the same time, I appreciate the heavily censored monopolist platform they offer. Thanks for asking.”
> yet I cannot imagine dealing with a devil in order to better know the devil or trying drugs to know what drugs are.
Ah yes, you have to be the “devil” in order to get removed from YouTube. I see. Tom, you don’t exactly have to be the Nordic Resistance Movement to get thrown out of YouTube.
> Is consciousness a jailer or is it a savior?
It’s not conscious to support authoritarianism, it’s more of a sleep walk.
> when evidence lacks and hate lyricism prevails
I don’t think you believe in so called “evidence”, Tom. I think you believe in narratives like most people, and you are happy that they are enforced via censorship on platforms you use. Why do you not admit it?
> then I choose to avoid such areas of what I then consider as non-thoughts.
If consider some of your utterances non-thoughts as well, Tom. And yet I engage with them.
> freedom of a side-step
*Freedom to support heavily censored corporate platform instead. I mean, if you want a filter bubble run by Google, then go for it. But I don’t want to see you hypocritically complaining about them, if you are willing to do this, that’s a bit too much for me to sit idle.
@Iron Heart, you’re exhausting. Looks like I’m bound to set you as undesirable again with the dedicated uBO filter. I just don’t have the time to participate to your upside-down non-thoughts. Take care.
Something that isn’t actively moderated inevitably turns right wing. Many to the extreme right were banned from Youtube and other platforms just gave them an opportunity.
@Kirk
So what you are saying to me is that there is leftist “moderation” a.k.a. censorship going on within YouTube, and that people from the right would thus rather flock to other platforms? That seems like the logical conclusion, but I am not sure you can put this one on the platform itself, because you can potentially post far-left content on e.g. Odysee as well. Odysee also contains a lot of non-political content and I am tired of the trash takes posted here.
@Tom Hawack
> Looks like I’m bound to set you as undesirable again with the dedicated uBO filter. I just don’t have the time to participate to your upside-down non-thoughts. Take care.
You make the same error Google makes, thinking that hiding away an opinion actually makes it go away. Fitting, isn’t it? Go ahead, hide me with uHide Origin, I will reply to your comments regardless and call you out, you merely strip away your ability to reply to me in return. And it’s not like I care about that all too much, you know.
I shudder because of your threat! You can believe that!
PS: Where has your flowery language gone, not so nice anymore when actually questioned, are we?
Micro PC behind your TV with Windows, Firefox with uBlock installed. No need for YoutubeTV or any bloated TV software.
We have created a monster that has tried to crush any competition. I see many of you listing how you circumvent currently, and that is interesting. However; I think the point is that many of those techniques will go away. This company will just:
a) Continue to increase the number and time % of commercials.
b) Continue to increase monthly cost.
c) Continue to increase the amount of personal data collected and leveraged against you!
I appreciate the argument that we need to support the content creators, but there are other ways to do that like merchandising. This company does not need more of our money and they only give a little of it to the creators, anyway. Many of the creators are only there because us viewers have failed to support the competition.
So what can we do? Let’s try to boost competitors to this virtual monopoly!
Don’t be a loser and give up! Please, in these comments, what other streaming sites do you consider a semi-viable alternative we can boost with our numbers and support?
So what will you do when a channel or creator you happen to follow is not available anywhere else? Start convincing creators to move or mirror on other platforms like Rumble or Bitchute. Video platforms aren’t interchangeable when people flock to them for unique content.
Yes, that is an issue, and a good point. Thank you. But my thinking is more long term. Maybe you still watch what you feel like you have to, but go looking on the alt site(s) for new content. And yes, maybe we the users can get some of the talent to distribute on other venues.
Also I would like to know how and if people would tolerate the ads whilst paused and if they play audio. How many times do people pause watching something to hear someone or something else? I would say quite a lot. This is reckless and stupid.
There will always be a way around this but that is besides the point. I am well aware of all the options out there.
The stench of scumbagery is unmistakable!
Eventually they will introduce ads in paid the paid model also like every other streaming service which is one of reasons why people went to piracy to start with along with many other reasons which these streaming companies have breached already too.
Fatcats are that because they’re always gluttonous slobs only looking after themselves and their own interests.
This new loser at youtube will hopefully bring the entire thing tumbling down upon him.
I use SmartTubeNext on my Android TV, Revanced on my Android Phone & uBlock on my Mac.
YouTube TV, either free with ads or paid without ads, but is paid with ads a new concept?
A 30 seconds ad (“Instead of seeing two :15″ ads consecutively” LOL) before the video PLUS ads when video is paused, and paying for that?
If I write here and now that I subscribe to this attractive offer no one would believe me unless maybe the very ones who subscribe or those who don’t and consider me to be late in terms of mental acuity. I’m not a genius yet I wouldn’t subscribe to ‘YouTube TV’ which means that you need not to be one to perceive the aberration of offers you can and should refuse, which implicitly means that you may not be one if you accept them, LOL (explicitly implicit is it?!).
Sorry, looks like i derogated to my eternal credo : never think and even less point out what/who you consider to be late in the evolution of mankind, LOL. Obviously I derogate here, but I promise this is truly exceptional. LOL.
PC – Brave, other browser with uBlock Origin added
Android smartphone – NewPipe
Android TV / Fire TV – SmartTubeNext
iOS / iPadOS – Invidious, Brave, Safari with a content blocker like Wipr or 1Blocker
Nothing more to add.
Ads don’t bother me that much, I expect as much to watch Youtube or any other service for free. Frankly I just don’t get the obsession with trying to circumvent the ads when its also benefitting the YouTuber themselves. The alternative is not having a free option at all and being forced to pay for the service.
Yes, I watch YouTube on my TV. Via my bustedlaptopwithoutascreen-box, using Ungoogled Chromium with ublock origin, h264ify, i still don’t care about cookies, youtube autohd+fps -subscriptions which I pay zero dollars for and watch zero ads and zero cookie-begging popups. There is not one app in my TV that is of any use to me. They’re all sh*t. A computer hooked up to your TV and a wireless keyboard with a touchpad is all you need. Or a tablet with NewPipe..
Google is doing A/B testing for folks using adblockers. Essentially, an anti adblock on desktop website to coerce folks into Youtube Premium.
Why do people use such a high priced pay to use a streaming service that shows adds? Are they locked into only being able to use this service? There are lots of much lower pay services, and even free serices that show ads.
People follow content creators, not video platforms. Creators flock to Youtube because of its much wider audience and the audience is there because there are so many creators compared to the competition. It’s a win win feedback loop for Google.