YouTube will stop supporting unskippable 30-second ads on the popular streaming video platform beginning sometime in 2018, according to an official statement from Google given to Campaign. The move is said to be a way to provide a better experience and format that works well for YouTube users, as well as the company`s advertisers.
The advertising focus for YouTube will switch over to a 6-second unskippable `bumper ad` format in the coming year, which the company introduced in 2016 and is said to be a way to convince more impatient users to stick around when an ad pops up before a video.
It wasn`t confirmed whether the removal of unskippable 30-second ads would hit both the web and mobile YouTube apps, but Google`s wording appears to support the format`s removal across all platforms.
`As part of that, we´ve decided to stop supporting 30-second unskippable ads as of 2018 and focus instead on formats that work well for both users and advertisers,` said a Google spokesman. A few industry analysts speaking with Campaign agreed that YouTube`s decision makes sense, particularly within the context of a growing rivalry with Facebook and its ramping up of video content. YouTube Red, the company`s premium subscription service, lets users avoid ads altogether for $9.99/month, which places it alongside other video streaming platforms like Netflix ($9.99/month) and Hulu ($11.99/month for commercial-free videos).
While this move will not please advertisers, Callum McCahon, strategy director for Born Social, said it is the price YouTube is willing to pay to keep people watching.
`I´m reading this as a signal that YouTube is very worried about Facebook,` he added. `We know that video is right at the very core of Facebook´s roadmap. Their video offering is becoming ever more attractive to brands by the day, and YouTube is panicking.` For Netflix, the company has remained adamant that it will never introduce advertisements into its streaming ...
|
