YouTube has officially confirmed the rollout of pause-screen ads for all advertisers, concluding a test phase that began in 2023. This comes six years after the initial warnings about such a possibility and a year and a half after Google recognized the high profitability of the format.
The implementation of pause ads was gradual and methodical. Back in 2018, the first warnings surfaced about the potential use of YouTube's pause screen for ads. By April 2023, Google officially announced plans to introduce this feature on YouTube and launched a pilot project with limited access for advertisers.
A year later, Philipp Schindler, Google's Chief Business Officer, confirmed that the new format proved highly profitable for the company, and now these plans have been fully realized. Oluwa Falodun, YouTube’s Communications Manager, stated: "Given the strong positive feedback from both advertisers and viewers, we have widely rolled out pause ads for all advertisers."
YouTube users quickly reacted to the changes. Last week, numerous posts on Reddit reported a noticeable increase in the frequency of pause-screen ads on YouTube. The video hosting platform positions these ads as "less intrusive." However, the company did not comment on a potential reduction in the frequency of standard ads. Notably, in 2023, YouTube introduced non-skippable ads and experimented with longer but less frequent ad breaks.
YouTube is not a pioneer in using pause screens for ads. Services like Hulu and AT&T have long employed this practice. The streaming service Sling TV introduced pause ads back in July this year, allowing users the option to disable them in the settings. YouTube, on the other hand, has not mentioned such a choice, which may lead to additional dissatisfaction among users.