FreeWheel: 71% of viewers dislike unnatural ad breaks
FreeWheel's Viewer Experience Lab research indicates that disruptive ad breaks in streaming content lead to negative viewer experiences, with 71% of viewers bothered by unnatural ad breaks and 39% significantly so. The study also found that brands appearing in disruptive ad breaks experienced 14% lower unaided recall and 15% lower aided recall, along with a 5% decrease in perceived brand quality. FreeWheel suggests AI and machine learning can help identify optimal cue points for ad breaks to mitigate these issues.
Key Takeaways
- 71% of viewers are bothered by unnatural ad breaks; 39% are bothered a lot.
- Viewers rated ads 16% more intrusive when they did not come at a natural break.
- Brands in disruptive ad breaks saw 14% lower unaided recall and 15% lower aided recall.
- Brands appearing in shows with disruptive ad breaks were rated 5% lower in quality.
- FreeWheel says AI and machine learning can help determine cue points for ad breaks by scanning words, actions, and objects in video content.
Why It Matters
The immediate takeaway is that ad timing now has measurable downside: disruptive breaks raise viewer frustration and also weaken ad recall and brand quality scores. For the streaming ecosystem, that puts more weight on how publishers place ads across HVOD, FAST, TV shows built without ad breaks, and short-form content that now has to accommodate them. FreeWheel’s answer is cue-point detection using AI and machine learning. What to watch next is whether media companies adopt tools that scan content for words, actions, and objects to place breaks more naturally.
Read full article at freewheel.com
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