As a member of the Coalition for Better Ads, the Mountain View giant recently announced a new update that will extend the locking functions of thead blocker integrated in Google Chrome. It will therefore put a stop to the most annoying and intrusive advertisements and, more precisely, to those that will appear before and during the videos that can be viewed online
Starting in summer 2020, the block will be applied to video content deemed not compliant with the latest Better Ads standards. This will apply to all websites, including YouTube, as specified by Google itself.
Video and advertising: changes coming soon
For about four years, the Coalition for Better Ads has been actively committed to the improvement of online advertisements and the ways in which they are implemented within each web page. Google it was one of the first companies to embrace Better Ads' proposals, based on consumer opinions and advice dictated by the main experts in the sector.
The latest news therefore concerns the advertisements included in the videos, the ones we view every day on the main multimedia portals and information sites. After interviewing around 45,000 consumers, the Coalition for Better Ads has decided to take action against three specific formats of video advertising:
- Pre-roll ads: long, non-skippable ads or ad groups longer than 31 seconds; are displayed before a video.
- Ads mid-roll: Ads of any length that appear after viewing the first half of the movie.
- Image or text ads: All ads that overlap and cover more than 20% of the displayed content.
According to the new standards promoted by Google and Better Ads, these ads will be automatically blocked when using Chrome, but only with regard to videos with a maximum length of 8 minutes; this means that content longer than 8 minutes can contain any type of ad, be it pre-roll or mid-roll.
The new features of the Google Chrome ad blocker will be introduced on August 5, 2020. The Coalition for Better Ads urges website managers to stop showing the types of ads just listed.
Google: YouTube will also respect the new standards
On the occasion of the aforementioned announcement, Google added an important clarification regarding YouTube. Its portal is undoubtedly the most used as far as video viewing is concerned and it is for this reason that, as anticipated, it will also comply with the new Better Ads standards. Here is the official press release:
"It is important to report that YouTube.com, like other websites with video content, will be examined to verify compliance with the standards. In a similar way to the previous Better Ads standards, we will update the policies of our advertising platforms, including YouTube […]".
The extension of the blocking features of Google Chrome will bring significant advantages not only to users, but also and above all to companies.
In recent years, videos have become important updating tools for businesses, therefore, pre-roll and mid-roll advertisements are likely to represent real obstacles. The next Better Ads standards will help facilitate the usual use of videos in the company, removing any 'stakes' from less long videos.
