With the decrease of TV viewers and the increase of online video viewers, there’s no question that video ads are here to stay. The only concern for major online video providers is the type of ads they should implement.
Earlier this month, AOL revamped their media player platform. No one blinked an eye, that is, until they introduced their new advertising system: ticker ads.
Although YouTube and BrightCove are the “pioneers” of the idea, AOL is determined to make ticker ads the new standard as an alternative to pre-roll ads (ads that are shown before a video starts) that currently reign supreme among online video sites.
No More Obstructing Ads
Instead of placing their ads on top of a video, AOL’s ticker ads are located at the bottom of the player. If clicked, the video is paused and the ad instantly appears in the actual video player window. After 15 seconds, the ad disappears and the video re-appears.
As Greg Sterling from Sterling Marketing said,
“The consensus, based in part on research, is that viewers don’t like pre-rolls. So we may see versions of this format become one of the standards used in video advertising.”
Finally, someone who feels our advertising pains.
