Twitch has revealed a new ‘ad experiment’ that’s designed to make advertisements ‘less intrusive’ when users are watching a stream. The problem is, it’s a method that will almost never surface, which means the impact it’s set to have on the end user will be heavily negated.
In recent years, how Twitch delivers ads and how some streamers utilize these features has been a point of contention for some users. In some cases, we’ve seen streamers heavily abuse the ads function on the platform, trying to innovate to make the most money possible out of them.
Do You Ever Pause a Twitch Stream?
The folks at Twitch are preparing to trial a new ‘pause-screen ads’ feature. As named, this would allow viewers to see ads when their streams are paused, which is something that we have to assume rarely happens.
When you’re watching a Twitch stream, how often do you pause playback? If you were to pause, and ads were to play, you’d arguably find yourself a good minute or two behind the bulk of the broadcast, which could be catastrophic if you’re watching a high-stakes esports tournament and don’t want any spoilers, for instance.
It also hasn’t been made clear how the function will work.
For instance, if you accidentally paused a stream for a single second, does that mean you’re then forced to watch an unskippable thirty-second advertisement?
In the comments under the post that announced the trial, users were equal parts confused and concerned, suggesting it’s a non-starter of a solution that nobody asked for. It’s important to stress that this is a trial for a reason, and it might never make it to the platform as a full, polished product, but it’s strange that it was even suggested in the first place.
Do you think this Twitch ads idea is a waste of time? Let us know on the Insider Gaming Discord server.
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Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You'll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere.
More from Grant Taylor-Hill
Please consider to quit Discord, their new biometric ID and/or AI driven age detection is very questionable. Thanks.
YouTube and Twitch bot mostly fake stats botted by talent agencies to make it look bigger for advertisers to think the sites are relevant. Sooner they go under the better.