{"id":3112274,"date":"2026-04-14T10:18:20","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T17:18:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/?p=3112274"},"modified":"2026-04-14T10:42:39","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T17:42:39","slug":"youtube-livestreams-will-now-hold-back-ads-during-peak-engagement-to-protect-the-vibe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2026\/04\/14\/youtube-livestreams-will-now-hold-back-ads-during-peak-engagement-to-protect-the-vibe\/","title":{"rendered":"YouTube livestreams will now hold back ads during peak engagement to protect the vibe"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p id=\"speakable-summary\" class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">YouTube <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.youtube\/news-and-events\/live-streaming-updates-monetization-tools\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">announced<\/a> this week that it will now hold back ads during livestreams if chat engagement is at its peak, and if users show support with Super Chat, Super Stickers, or gift purchases. Until now, the only way to avoid seeing ads was by paying for a YouTube Premium subscription. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Google-owned platform said in a <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.youtube\/news-and-events\/live-streaming-updates-monetization-tools\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">blog post<\/a> that when a chat explodes with energy, it wants to &#8220;protect that collective vibe.&#8221; When YouTube&#8217;s system recognizes that engagement is high, the platform will automatically hold back ads for everyone.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The idea behind this change is to help creators maintain momentum for viewers without interruptions from ads, the company says. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On the other hand, when a fan&nbsp;shows support with a Super Chat, Super Stickers, or gifts, they will be rewarded right away with a personal ad-free window right after their purchase. For context, Super Chat allows viewers to pay to highlight their messages, while Super Stickers are images that users can purchase to make their messages stand out in chats. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">YouTube announced these changes alongside other updates for live creators. The company shared that more creators around the world are now eligible to receive gifts from viewers, as gifts are now live in Canada, Korea, Indonesia, Thailand, Australia, and New Zealand.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Additionally, viewers can now send GIFs on creators&#8217; horizontal livestreams, not just vertical ones, directly from their mobile devices.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">YouTube also announced that creators can now go live in both vertical and horizontal formats at the same time, with all viewers being able to connect in a single shared chat. The company says over 30% of live watch time in the U.S. came from connected TVs in 2025, which is why it wants creators to be able to customize their streams for all sorts of screens.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-techcrunch-inline-cta\">\n\t<div class=\"inline-cta__wrapper\">\n\t\t<div class=\"inline-cta__logo\">\n\t\t\t<svg aria-hidden=\"true\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"41\" height=\"20\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 41 20\"><path fill=\"#fff\" d=\"M0 0v6.452h7.097V20h7.097V6.452h6.451V0zM27.742 13.548V6.452h-7.097V20h20v-6.452zM40.645 0H27.742v6.452h12.903z\"\/><\/svg>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"inline-cta__flag\">Techcrunch event<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"inline-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"inline-cta__header-container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"inline-cta__header-container-desktop\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"inline-cta__header has-h-5-font-size\">Meet your next investor or portfolio startup at Disrupt<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"inline-cta__subheader\"><br>Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to save up to $410.<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"inline-cta__header-container-mobile\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"inline-cta__header has-h-5-font-size\">Meet your next investor or portfolio startup at Disrupt<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"inline-cta__subheader\"><br>Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to save up to $410.<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"inline-cta__event-info\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"inline-cta__location\">San Francisco, CA<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"inline-cta__separator\">|<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"inline-cta__date\">October 13-15, 2026<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"inline-cta__register-button\">\n\t\t\t\t\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a data-ctaText=\"REGISTER NOW\" data-destinationLink=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/events\/tc-disrupt-2026\/?utm_source=tc&amp;utm_medium=ad&amp;utm_campaign=disrupt2026&amp;utm_content=tc_inline_eb&amp;promo=tc_inline_eb&amp;display=\" data-event=\"button\" class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/events\/tc-disrupt-2026\/?utm_source=tc&amp;utm_medium=ad&amp;utm_campaign=disrupt2026&amp;utm_content=tc_inline_eb&amp;promo=tc_inline_eb&amp;display=\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">REGISTER NOW<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The move comes a few days after YouTube <a href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2026\/04\/10\/youtube-premium-youtube-music-subscription-price-increase\/\">raised subscription prices<\/a> for YouTube Premium in the U.S. The YouTube Premium individual plan is increasing from $13.99 to $15.99 per month, while the family plan is going from $22.99 to $26.99 per month.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Until now, the only way to avoid seeing ads was by paying for a YouTube Premium subscription. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":133574480,"featured_media":2003560,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tc-featured-article":false,"tc-header-option":"","tc-breaking-news":false,"tc-article-brief":false,"carmot_uuid":"","apple_news_api_created_at":"2026-04-14T17:18:26Z","apple_news_api_id":"6afab5c6-c65f-4d32-bc3e-88bd9222cf53","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2026-04-14T17:35:32Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/Aavq1xsZfTTK8Poi9kiLPUw","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"tc_subtitle":"","tc_featured_image_disabled":false,"tc_exclude_from_rss_feed":false,"tc_exclude_from_content_rivers":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[577051039,577030456],"tags":[6567,577370901],"tc_region":[],"tc_event":[],"tc_storyline_tax":[],"coauthors":[576912303],"class_list":["post-3112274","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-apps","category-media-entertainment","tag-youtube","tag-youtube-livestreams"],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- 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