this post was submitted on 25 Jan 2025
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Frustrated YouTube viewers seek explanation for hour-long unskippable ads (Update: Statement) (www.androidauthority.com)
submitted 5 days ago by moe90@feddit.nl to c/technology@lemmy.world
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[–] captain_aggravated@sh.itjust.works 6 points 4 days ago (1 children)

The most mysterious one to me happened in 2015 or so. I was watching Zero Punctuation, and it served me an hour long computer networking lecture as an ad. Like, some Indian guy delivering a power point presentation. I was like, what's the monetization strategy here, guys? Did this dude pay you to serve his lectures as ads? What?

[–] echodot@feddit.uk 4 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (2 children)

At one point there was a period of time where YouTube was consistently serving me ads in Arabic, a language that I don't speak and from a country I have never been to.

Their algorithm just breaks sometimes.

Edit: not sure why that was in capitals.

[–] captain_aggravated@sh.itjust.works 1 points 4 days ago (1 children)

There was awhile there where my parents were getting ads for Pull-Ups Toddler diapers in Spanish.

[–] echodot@feddit.uk 4 points 4 days ago (1 children)

I know there was that story about Google knowing about some guy's daughter being pregnant before she'd actually told him.

So maybe I'm just really Arabic and haven't noticed yet.

[–] captain_aggravated@sh.itjust.works 5 points 4 days ago

That wasn't Google, it was Target. Based on the teen's buying habits, that she suddenly started buying certain vitamins, unscented lotion, that sort of stuff with her loyalty card, their system put two and two together and sent her coupons for maternity and baby products, which is how her father learned he was gonna be a grandpa.

Google has similar power to know more about you than your friends and family, though.

[–] AJ1@lemmy.ca 0 points 4 days ago

"THEY ARE ALGORITHM JUST BREAKS SOMETIME"

is what you just said