Google TV is packed with ads. From algorithmic TV recommendations to sponsored content to straight-up commercials for video games, the home screen on Google TV is half app launcher, half interactive billboard. This week, I noticed a new addition: under the Continue watching strip is a section dedicated to YouTube’s first-party AdBlitz channel, offering quick access to Super Bowl TV spots. Google TV is showing us ads for ads.
The AdBlitz YouTube channel has been around since 2007. AdBlitz presents a curated selection of Super Bowl commercials, and on its face, it’s a cool little pop culture repository. Super Bowl ad space is at an absolutely wild premium, with advertisers dropping an average of $8 million for a 30-second spot during the game. Given the stakes, companies tend to pull out all the stops for the big game spots, making for some really memorable viewing. On the AdBlitz channel, you can see playlists of ads dating as far back as 2009. It’s neat!
At the same time, though, the AdBlitz strip takes up a lot of space in the Google TV UI. As of today, it’s showing cards for ads from Intuit and HubSpot, as well as links to playlists featuring ads organized by genre: action-packed ads, informative ads, comedy ads, emotional ads. To Google’s credit, the strip isn’t showing ads for things like sports betting or mail-order weight-loss drugs (both of which can be found on the AdBlitz channel itself). But it’s still more real estate than I’d prefer to be taken up by a carousel advertising lavishly expensive advertisements.
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The Google TV Streamer I’m seeing these AdBlitz ads on is a full-price hardware product from Google. The ad density on the $50 Chromecast with Google TV was annoying enough, but the Streamer is comparatively premium at $100. In my Google TV Streamer review, ads were the biggest mark against the thing — and the situation hasn’t gotten any better since. We’ve actually seen Google testing new types of home screen ads in the meantime.
Google’s not alone in cramming its TV UI with ads, of course; Roku and Fire TV interfaces are just as clogged with sponsored content, and so are many proprietary TV interfaces. But I do wonder why we put up with it on our TVs more than we would on devices like smartphones or tablets. If Google’s next phone shipped with ads all over its UI, we’d pan it. I realize the Google TV Streamer is a less expensive device than a Pixel phone, but the ad situation is absurd for any paid product. This isn’t some free ad-supported product streaming platform; it’s an above-average-priced set-top box meant to provide a premium TV experience.
If you’re into Super Bowl ads, more power to you — plenty of people are, and YouTube’s AdBlitz channel is a convenient way to see them without having to sit through all that football. Personally, I’m getting more and more tired of seeing ads on my TV before I’m even watching anything. This kind of experience in a product that costs money is borderline insulting.
Google TV’s apps only mode doesn’t solve the problem; it disables key Google TV features like Google Assistant integration and access to the Library tab. More to the point, it also doesn’t remove all the ads. I’m a dyed-in-the-wool Android fan, but Google TV is doing its level best to push me away. I’ve had my fill: the $129 Apple TV 4K doesn’t show home screen ads, has beefier specs, and comes with a rechargeable remote — and I just ordered one.
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