A few years ago, and this is still the case, traditional television broadcast its content with many interruptions. advertisingIn a 90-minute movie, they might cut every 20 minutes, or sometimes less, and we just accepted it: that's how it was. Netflix was launched more recently, and now we also have Prime Video, Disney+, HBO, Apple TV, and others. They started well, with no ads and account sharing, but these days the experience isn't the best.
This past weekend, I wanted to watch the beginning of the final season of The Boys on my Smart TV so I could watch it all with the remote and without turning on any extra devices. I used a trick Some readers thought it was silly: I'd press play on the video, watch the first ad, fast-forward past the commercial break, watch the rest of the ads, and then watch the content straight through. This isn't ideal either.
The overuse of advertising in streaming
In the image above you can see the problem indicated by arrows. There are four cuts The video was full of ads: the first one shortly after the 15-minute mark, the second before the half-hour mark, the third very soon after the second, and then a fourth cut that's just too much to even mention. To make matters worse, the episode didn't even start until after a minute and a half of advertising.
Personally, I think watching legal content on streaming services with ads is WORSE than watching it on traditional TV. When you watch TV, you're using something you're already used to, and often you turn it on to watch something you're not that interested in. Watching something you are interested in with so many interruptions is frustrating, a feeling that the different platforms are trying to create.
Don't want ads? Pay extra
Streaming platforms offer an option to remove ads. For example, Prime Video charges €2 to remove them, but Disney+ charges €4 and Netflix €7 (there are other upgrades available). The plan is very clear: they bombard you with ads, which they charge the advertiser for, and if you want to avoid ads, you have to pay for it yourself. The platforms don't lose out.
Legal options to avoid annoying ads include download the video (This isn't possible for all content on all platforms.) You can watch it offline or skip the ads first, like I used to do. For the latter, it's worth being patient, as you have to jump behind each of the dots to make them disappear before restarting the video without ads.
Illegal or immoral options include watching content with blockers or outright piracy. The fact is, we're being pushed into these choices, especially on Linux, where platforms like Prime Video don't allow us to go beyond SD quality.