Imagine you’re watching a highly anticipated video from your favorite YouTuber – perhaps the moment a famous couple finally got engaged – and an ad pops up right after the clip. This is part of YouTube’s new ad format called Peak Moments.
The company introduced the new ad format during its Upfront presentation on Wednesday in New York.
Peak Points uses Google’s Gemini AI to analyze YouTube videos and identify the moments that it believes have the highest viewer engagement or the most emotional impact, and then offers to place ads immediately after them.
Point Peaks aims to benefit advertisers by using tactics that aim to capture the attention of users when they are most interested in the content. This approach is similar to a strategy called emotion-based targeting, where advertisers place ads that match the emotions evoked by a video. It is believed that when viewers experience a heightened emotional state, it leads to better ad recall.
However, viewers may find such interruptions annoying, especially when they are deeply immersed in the emotional arc of the video and want the ad to end quickly to continue watching.
By the way, YouTube has announced another ad format that may be more attractive to users. The platform debuted a shoppable feed, where users can browse and buy products during ads.
