Google Chrome Will Start Blocking Intrusive Video Ads This August

Google will start blocking intrusive ads on short-form video content (videos less than 8 minutes in duration) by default in theGoogle Chromeweb browser this August. To be specific, this includesnon-skippable ads longer than 31 secondsthat appear before a video starts, mid-roll ads, and ads that occupy almost one-third of the content.

For the uninitiated, Google relies on the Better Ads Standards set by the ‘Coalition for Better Ads’ for identifying unintrusive ads. The group recently announced itsnew standardsafter conducting research involving 45,000 consumers.

“Broadening the environments covered by our Better Ads Standards will benefit consumers and provide additional guidance for businesses to respond to consumer preferences,”said Neal Thurman, director of the Coalition for Better Ads.

In case you are wondering,this includes Google’s own video platform YouTube as well.“Similar to the previous Better Ads Standards, we’ll update our product plans across our ad platforms, including YouTube, as a result of this standard, and leverage the research as a tool to help guide product development in the future,”wrote Google in a blog post.

The blog post contains GIF renders showing examples of intrusive ad experiences. Take a look at those GIFs below.Non-skippable pre-roll ads longer than 31 seconds | Source: Coalition of Better AdsMid-roll ads | Source: Coalition for Better AdsAds that occupy 1/3 of the video player | Source: Coalition for Better Ads

This policy will beenforced on Chrome starting August 5 this year. Google advises website owners with ads to review their site status in the Ad Experience Report tool to check if their current ad practices comply with these revised policies.

Subin B

Subin writes about consumer tech, software, and security. He secretly misses the headphone jack while pretending he’s better off with the wireless freedom.

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