YouTube is reportedly rolling out pause ads widely to users and advertisers. Last year, the video streaming giant first announced plans to show these ads when videos are paused. Many netizens reported seeing these ads and expressed concerns about the move. These ads appear as pop-up ads and can be either static images or short looping videos. After seeing the strong response from advertisers and users, YouTube reportedly went ahead with its plans to roll out these ads.
YouTube is reportedly rolling out a widespread ad pause
Pause ads, which appear when a video is paused, are gaining popularity among users, with many posting on social media platforms like Reddit and Twitter about the latest developments on video streaming platforms.
These ads are different from the ads YouTube usually shows at the beginning and in the middle of videos. These ads appear when users pause the video. Unlike full-video ads, these ads are pop-ups that only take up a portion of the screen. According to examples seen by Gadgets 360 staff on social media, these ads appear on the right side of the video interface on the web and above the comments section of the mobile app.
Additionally, unlike the non-skippable ads on the platform that were introduced in 2023, these ads can be removed by clicking the “X” icon in the top right corner of the ad. However, the sudden appearance of these ads is not a coincidence.
YouTube communications manager Oluwa Falodun told The Verge that the company decided to roll out the ad pause broadly after noticing “strong advertiser and viewer response.”
The company reportedly said the ad pauses are intended to provide users with a “less disruptive” experience. However, the company did not mention whether regular ads would appear less frequently after implementing these pop-up ads.
While the move to show pause ads seems to be unpopular among users, it is not the first streaming platform to implement this. Many OTT platforms such as Disney+ Hotstar, JioCinema and Zee5 show ads on the pause screen on both the free tier and cheaper subscription plans.
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