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YouTube introduced ads on some of its videos yesterday and, not surprisingly, response from the blogosphere and the site’s community has been mixed. “I’m unsubscribing from anyone who has ads in their videos, and if everyone has ads, then I’ll just find a site that doesn’t,” read a post on YouTube’s official blog (via Adweek).
YouTube’s official position (as stated on the blog) is that “we’ve been working with select partners to improve YouTube’s presentation of advertising on their videos in a manner that brings you creative, compelling content and should also increase revenue flow to artists and content owners.”
The ads are animated overlays that appear on the bottom 20 percent of a video. If a user clicks on the overlay, a “deeper” interactive video ad launches that is meant to be “relevant and entertaining.” The video the user was watching is temporarily paused.
Currently, only “select partners” have the ability to incorporate YouTube ads, and those partners will share in the revenue. A Google spokesperson stressed the fact that Google is not intent on monetizing all videos on the site.
While plenty of the comments about the ads are negative, many other users seem to feel that ads are okay. Interestingly, most of the comments to the post that announces the ads actually refer to a change that YouTube made with how it lists comments to videos. One user wrote, “You new ad thing is fine with me and doesn’t seem like it will intrude. BUT put the comments BACK the way they were!… I don’t know whether I’m coming or going trying to read a most discussed vid. Terrible…. put it back!!!!!!!!!! I’ll watch 10 of your ads if you do…”
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