YouTube rolls out unskippable TV ads, prompting subscription questions

YouTube has started showing long, unskippable ads on televisions, a new option the company calls 'VRC Non-Skip.' The spots can run 6, 15 or 30 seconds, with Google AI selecting the length, and are designed to "ensure your message is delivered in its entirety." Viewers have expressed frustration, using words like "unsufferable, miserable, annoying, the final straw, and the breaking point." A writer who noticed the change said that after spending a few days with the ads they "stink," and found it especially irritating to wait for a skip button that never appears despite having grown up with long cable ad breaks.

The rollout coincided with a cheaper subscription tier that removes ads. YouTube Premium Lite costs $8 a month and offers ad-free viewing, background play, and downloads on most videos; the full $14-a-month Premium provides those features on all videos plus YouTube Music.

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