InStream Video Ads
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How YouTube InStream Ads Work
YouTube In-Stream Ads can run in video players appearing on YouTube watch pages and channel pages with featured videos. In addition to www.youtube.com, these ads may run on YouTube's mobile, connected TV, and game console properties, as well as the Google Video network and embedded YouTube players. Standard In-Stream Ads can be a maximum of 15 seconds (20 seconds in EMEA). In-Stream Ads that are 30 seconds long are allowed on a sub-set of inventory.
The ad can appear when a user initiates video play either in the beginning (pre-roll), at points in between (mid-roll), or after (post-roll).
A view of a skippable ad will increment the YouTube view count when the ad has been watched completely. Non-skippable ads do not increment the view count.
Note: Companion ad is optional and only displayed in certain cases, like if the ad is viewed in the context of a watch page on www.youtube.com.
Assets Overview
| Asset | Optional/Required | File Type | Comments / Details |
|---|---|---|---|
Site Served |
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| Video URL | Required | Must upload Video to YouTube (see guidelines below and help link for uploading Videos) | |
| Click-through URL | Required | Must provide a destination URL (can be 3rd party URL) for InStream video | |
| Companion Banner | Optional | JPG, static GIF, SWF | 50Kb max size |
| Up to 24 fps | |||
| 30 seconds max animation time (user-initiated / autoplay allowed) | |||
Third-Party Served |
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| Video Ad | Required | VAST Tag - H.264 (MP4), FlashVideo (FLV) and WebM video file types must all be included (other formats may be included but will not be used) | Must be a Linear (Pre-Fetch) Tag |
| Companion Banner | Optional | Served via the VAST Tag |
Same requirements as for the site served companions. Does not need to be sent as a separate asset. |
Creative Submission and Turn Around Time
- Assets received by YouTube no later than FOUR business days prior to campaign start date sent via your Account Manager.
- Maximum of 2 creative revisions for site-served creatives are allowed per 6-week period for active campaigns.
- Maximum of 3 creatives per site-served placement.
- Maximum of 5 creatives per third-party served placement.
Video Ad
Technical Specifications
Attributes (Site Served) |
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| Video Requirements: | Must be uploaded to YouTube (send Video URL) | |
| Must allow embedding | ||
| Must be public or unlisted | ||
| True streaming is not allowed | ||
| Minimum Video Length: | 12 seconds (for skippable ads) | |
| Maximum Video Length: | Up to 30 seconds (skippable ads) | |
| 15 seconds or 30 seconds (non-skippable ads) | ||
| 20 seconds or 30 seconds (non-skippable ads, EMEA only) | ||
Formatting for Third-Party Served (VAST-Compliant) |
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| Format: | H.264 (MP4), FlashVideo (FLV), and WebM video file types must all be included (other formats may be included but will not be used) | |
| Aspect Ratio: | 4:3, 16:9, 5:2 | |
| Resolution: | 480x360, 640x360, 1920x800 | |
| Audio Format: | MP3 or AAC preferred | |
| Frames per second: | 30 | |
| Maximum file size: | 10 MB | |
| Requirements: | Must comply with YouTube's XML summary for VAST ad server response | |
| Must be SSL-compliant | ||
| Can not be skippable | ||
| Must be served via a linear VAST tag (pre-fetch tag) by a YouTube-approved vendor | ||
| Please ensure your ad server returns a valid crossdomain.xml file. If you choose to explicitly list domains, please ensure all ad serving domains are included. | ||
| VAST-served InStream ads are not eligible to run on mobile, tablets, game consoles or connected TV devices. | ||
Resizing your video based on YouTube's best practices recommendations before uploading it will help your videos look better on YouTube. Guidelines for video upload are available via the YouTube Help Center.
Please reference our help pages on how to upload your video, accepted file formats, and optimizing your video.
If you would like your video to not be viewable or searchable to the public outside of the ad, you can make it unlisted by following the instructions here.
Reporting Metrics
- Video Impressions
- Video Click Through
- 50% Midpoint Plays
- 100% Complete Plays
- "Skip" button clicks (for skippable ads)
Additional Metrics for Third-Party VAST Only
- 25% Quartile Plays
- 75% Quartile Plays
- Video Pauses
Third-Party Capabilities
Note: SSL capability is required! All impression tracking pixel URLs must begin with HTTPS:// More information here.
- 1 x 1 pixel tracking can be implemented for Video Impressions, 50% Midpoint Plays, and 100% Complete Plays for site-served In-Stream ads
- Third-party click redirect or click command accepted for Video Click Through for site-served In-Stream ads
- Third-party tracking can be implemented in third-party served In-Stream ads via VAST for all metrics listed above
We will only accept third party redirect/tracking pixel from a certified Ad Serving Vendor. Please refer to the full list of approved vendors.
Research
- Can accept research tracking tags except for YouTube Mobile or Leanback apps
- No pop-ups, layers, or other out-of-banner formats are allowed
- JavaScript pixels are not allowed on Third-Party VAST
Remarketing
- Allowed for skippable ads only
- Can be implemented on Skip or Complete events (one per event)
Additional Details and Recommendations
- A semi-transparent time bar is placed over the bottom 23px of the video, which may obscure its content. Please take this into consideration when creating your video and refrain from including any essential elements in this space.
- UI conceals 5 pixels of InStream on all InStream ads
- 18 pixels of the video are semi-transparent for all InStream ads
- 23 pixels of the video are semi-transparent on Android App
Companion Display Ad - Optional
Companion display ads may appear next to the video player running an in-stream ad, however the companion is never guaranteed to show. These only appear when the ad is viewed in the context of a YouTube watch page; they do not appear on mobile, embedded players, connected TVs or game consoles.
In some cases, if a companion creative is not supplied and the ad is a public YouTube hosted video, a companion will be automatically generated which includes information about the channel hosting the video ad. The automatically generated companion links to the channel, and will include the channel icon and name, and thumbnails of up to 5 videos from the most recently updated playlist on that channel.
Technical Specifications
Formatting |
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|---|---|---|
| Dimensions: | 300x60 | |
| Formats: | Static GIF, JPG, SWF (with backup GIF/JPG), Rich Media | |
| Flash Versions: | Flash 7, 8, 9 or 10 (AS3 or lower) | |
| Frames Per Second: | Up to 24 fps | |
| Maximum File Size | 50 Kb | |
Attributes |
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| Maximum Animation Time: | 30 seconds (host-initiated/auto-play allowed) | |
| Audio: | No sound | |
| Border: | Backup images with partially black or white backgrounds must have a visible border of a contrasting color and should not have a close button. | |
| Mouseover Policy | Effects must be user-initiated (rollover or click). For a complete explanation, please see our Mouseover Policy here. | |
| SSL |
Third-party and VAST-served companions must be SSL-compliant. Companion ads that don’t meet this requirement will not serve. |
|
Reporting Metrics
- Ad impressions
- Clicks and click-through rate (not supported for companions served via VAST as an iFrame resource URI or HTML resource URI)
Third-Party Capabilities
Note: SSL capability is required! All impression tracking pixel URLs must begin with HTTPS:// More information here.
- Accept third-party impression (1x1) tracking
- Accept third-party click tracker
- Accept third-party tag, can be third-party served (VAST)
We will only accept third party redirect/tracking pixels from a certified Ad Serving Vendor. Please refer to the full list of approved vendors.
Research
- Can accept a survey invitation banner for brand-lift/ad effectiveness studies as the companion ad
- No pop-ups, layers, or other out-of-banner formats are allowed
We will only accept third party redirect/tracking pixels from a certified Research Vendor. Please refer to the full list of approved vendors.
Additional Details and Recommendations
- If companion display is not provided, no other advertiser's creative will appear next to your pre-roll.
- If submitting SWF assets, please see how to implement clickTags.
