If you already hate advertisements on YouTube, then you are going to have a bad time with Pause Ads. During its earnings calls Thursday, Google has been touted for the success of ad testing, which could indicate the “feature” will be rolled out to even more viewers.
As the name suggests, suspended ads are unmissable advertisements which plays when you press pause on a video. Google is testing Pause Ads on TVs playing YouTube videos, and according to yesterday’s call, the company is happy with the results.
“In the first quarter, we saw strong uptake thanks to the introduction of a pilot Pause Ads on connected TVs, a new non-interrupting ad format that appears when users pause their organic content,” Philipp Schindler , senior vice president and chief commercial officer at Google, said in Thursday earnings call. “Early results show that Pause ads generate strong Brand Lift results and command higher prices for advertisers.
Schindler did not say whether Pause Ads would be rolled out to more YouTube users or whether these unwanted ads would end up on smaller screens like phones and desktops. YouTube first highlighted this feature last year in its Initial post explaining how these ads were a great opportunity for brands to “drive awareness or action by owning that unique interactive moment when people pause a video.”
It’s no surprise that YouTube wants people to watch more of its ads, since that’s where it makes a lot of its money. That and people paying for YouTube Premium because they’re tired of ads.
The video platform was crack down on ad blockers for the past year. The move appears to improve Google’s bottom line, as the company said on its earnings call that YouTube ad revenue was up 21% compared to the same period last year.
