It would not be a secret for anyone that YouTube is great fans of ads. They are as simple as an end screen after a video or as elaborate as a commercial break and it feels like they’ve taken over the internet. Internet banners are the method for paying for free services, but sometimes they can be really irritating – right when you are just getting to the interesting moment of the video! Fortunately, on YouTube, they tend to allow us to skip the introduction after a few seconds, don’t they? Well, that might be changing.
A New Change on the Horizon?
YouTube has been playing with the Ad placement-more so given that now they seem to be experimenting with the Skip button which is famous. Up until recently, ads on YouTube had a pre-countdown timer showing exactly when a viewer would be allowed to click the ‘Skip ad’ button and get back to the video. But this past week, some users have said they have seen that the countdown is gone, and they are left staring at the ad waiting for the Skip button to appear, or if it will ever appear at all.
What’s Happening on Mobile?
This sneak peek change was initially released on desktop, where users witnessed a gray box across the Skip button until it was unmasked. First people believed that it was only a test and now it’s going to the mobile devices too. Mobile users don’t have a gray box at all, and, of course, there is no countdown timer.
I sense that it is YouTube that is trying to pull a fast one on us and tell us that the ad cannot be skipped. The Skip button finally appears in the corner but the absence of the timer makes anyone guess when that magical moment is to come.
The Big Question: Why is YouTube Doing This?
Everyone knows that YouTube is using ads most of the time as its main source of income. Of course ads are what make the platform go round and ensure that content is available for a viewership fee of nothing. But with this new change it seems as though YouTube wants the user to stay with the ad longer, to watch more of it even if it is only 10 more seconds. Perhaps they feel people will assume it cannot be beaten and sit back while the commercial is executed fully.
Is This Permanent?
Currently, one cannot be sure of the fact whether this change is actually permanent. Honestly I don’t know YouTube has not had something to say on it. Maybe it’s a test that it plans to implement broadly or it might scrap the idea totally. However, since more users are already seeing it, it might also be the initial sign of a new trend.
That is still shown at the bottom of the seek bar below the video and so if you are well endowed with your attention, you will know when to click the ‘skip ad’ button. However, currently if this change happens permanently that may mean that users take some time to come across that hidden Skip button.
What Does This Mean for Us?
So it could mean that we have to endure watching more of the commercials than what was previously normally acceptable. It’s not the end and world, but it seems as though YouTube is out testing our patience. It is possible some users will never even get a glimpse of the change, whereas others will be tearing their hair out asking where that skip button went.
In the end, this is just another way YouTube is playing the endless game with ads and user experience. Now we have to just sit and watch how people will take it and if YouTube will decide to make this new feature permanent.
Conclusion
This brings me to YouTube who decided to hide the Skip button’s countdown timer, though this is trivial, reactions could be massive. Although it may not look like a big issue at some point it is something that can influence how long we spend viewing ads on the platform. Whether this new feature sticks around or fades away, one thing’s for sure: YouTube is always on the look out for how it can make things interesting for us.
