In a new post on its YouTube Help page, the company states that the platform is getting rid of its overlay ads starting in April. As to why, the reason is plain and simple. The ad wasn't a good fit for the user and was hindering the viewing experience. Furthermore, it also stated that it wanted to "shift engagement to higher performing ad formats." This change not only applies to the desktop version of YouTube but will also apply to the mobile as well.
If unfamiliar with this type of ad, it usually came in the form of a banner ad pop up that would show up when watching a video. While it wasn't the worst thing to experience on the platform since you could always close the ad, it could be a little jarring at times, especially when you were immersed watching a video.
Luckily, YouTube saw that this was not conducive to a prime viewing experience and is finally just removing it from its platform. As stated before, this ad will continue to be seen on YouTube for this month, but will no longer exist after April 6, 2023. As for creators, YouTube states that this change should have "limited impact" which will hopefully be the case. Of course, we won't know the full extent until after the ads have been cut.
Source: YouTube
Via: 9to5Google