Google is planning to ditch the 30-second unskippable advertisement format on YouTube next year, and is currently exploring different formats to create a “better ad experience for users and advertisers”.
Advertisements that are shorter than 30 seconds, including 20-second spots can currently be made unskippable.
Long unskippable adverts are seen as a nuisance by many viewers, and Google has introduced shorter formats.
In April last year, YouTube introduced the six-second unskippable bumper ad format. It’s understood that the platform intends to promote this format more heavily in the year ahead. This includes all formats, including TrueView.
“We’re committed to providing a better ads experience for users online,” said a Google spokesperson.
“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.”
The 30-second unskippable format has been around for years but attention spans of consumers across all video platforms has been on the decline.
In response, Google offered up 6-second unskippable ads to marketers last April, specifically designed for mobile and “snackable video”.