Big change coming to YouTube – and you’re not going to like it

July 20, 2020

By Kim Komando

YouTube is the web’s go-to destination for entertainment. But despite its fun facade, there’s a critical part of the platform that nearly everyone has gotten sick of at one point or another: advertisements.

It’s not unreasonable for YouTube to show ads, though. They’re what make YouTube free to use in the first place and give content creators a way to monetize their videos and support their own efforts. Tap or click here to see how one YouTuber made $40,000 in one month from product reviews.

But if you thought there were too many ads on YouTube before, you won’t be happy to hear what the platform has planned. YouTube has officially announced that it’s adding mid-video ads to more content than before, and to make matters worse, this feature is enabled by default. Here’s what you can do about it.

YouTube thinks you haven’t seen enough ads yet

Google has announced that YouTube will be changing the requirements for monetized ads on videos to give content creators more opportunities to earn revenue. Now, videos that are at least 8 minutes long will display an advertisement right in the middle — in addition to the ads that can show before and after.

Mid-video ads are nothing new, but this is the first time they’ve ever been introduced on videos as short as 8 minutes. Previously, your content had to be 10 minutes or longer to qualify for mid-video ads and ad revenue.

While this is a definite plus for content creators, ordinary YouTube viewers may be a bit less enthusiastic. Not only are mid-video ads now the norm for shorter videos, but this feature will also be enabled by default on all qualifying content.

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As bad as this sounds, there’s another unique factor to consider: videos from content creators may become shorter. Because it’s no longer necessary to hit the 10-minute mark to gain a mid-video ad, there’s no incentive to make videos longer than 8 minutes (unless it’s relevant to the type of content you’re creating).

But at the same time, there’s a silver lining: YouTube says it will be paying close attention to abusers of the platform’s ad services. If videos are shorter than 8 minutes and feature an ad, YouTube promises to take corrective action.

I don’t want to see any more ads! What can I do to fix this?

As annoying as this feature is for viewers, content creators depend on ads to earn a living. Creating videos regularly can be time-consuming and exhausting. If creating content is a full-time job for these people, why not give them an opportunity to fund their endeavors?

But, of course, if you’re not a YouTube creator, you probably want less ads overall. The platform is downright saturated in ads.

To get around this, you have two main options. The first: YouTube Premium. This $20 per month service not only gives you access to exclusive streaming content (including music), you also see zero ads on the platform whatsoever. None!

If you’re a heavy YouTube user, it’s a great way to get even more out of your favorite platform.

Otherwise, if you don’t want to pay the piper, it’s worth looking into the myriad of YouTube alternatives floating around the web. They may not have as many of the big names, but each one carries unique features that set them apart from the mainstream. Tap or click here to see our favorite YouTube alternatives.