Does anybody feel that the video at the top of our page is annoying?

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   Savio Dawsonposted 3 years ago

   I can't get the video off the page when scrolling down. This means I can't even read my article properly, let alone full-page. I am sure this would have been discussed before. If that is the case, please point me to such discussions. Else somebody, please guide me. Are those videos optional? Can I turn them off? And I am talking about my experience, especially on Axleaddict.

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      OldRosesposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      This topic has come up more than a few times in the forums.  I seem to remember a HubPages employee weighing in to tell us that Maven/HubPages had tested the videos and found that articles with them had increased traffic.  Of course none of us believe it because we know that when we encounter articles on the internet with annoying videos, we just click away so it makes sense that potential readers of our articles are doing the same thing.

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         lobobrandonposted 3 years agoin reply to this

         Did they say that? I recall another time they said the video makes money. Of course it does! Every single person viewing an article is forced to watch the ad on the video. You cannot close the video before the ad is done. Saying the video does not make money when you literally handcuff someone to the chair and make them watch the ad does not really say much.

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            OldRosesposted 3 years agoin reply to this

            You are probably right.  I just remember that they justified the video by claiming that they had done experiments and proved they were advantageous.

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      NateB11posted 3 years agoin reply to this

      As others have, this subject has come up a lot and everyone agrees - including myself - that the video at the top is obnoxious. Makes it almost impossible to read an article.

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   FatFreddysCatposted 3 years ago

   They're annoying and they suck. Unfortunately the videos cannot be turned off or opted out. People in the forums have been begging the Powers That Be to get rid of them (or at least move them to the bottom of our articles instead of the top) for a while, but they appear to be here to stay.

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      Savio Dawsonposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      Mann, I wonder what would be the user experience with such a video that refuses to move out of the way.

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   CYong74posted 3 years ago

   I see an X on the video once the actual one comes on. Clicking it removes the whole video.
   
   Pre video ads cannot be removed.
   
   Only possible on Desktop, though.

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      Savio Dawsonposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      Hmm.. I hope users do that. It is not for us as much as for the people landing on our page. That's what bothers me.

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         CYong74posted 3 years agoin reply to this

         Frankly, i have seen far worse on some news sites.

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            Savio Dawsonposted 3 years agoin reply to this

            The question is does it affect traffic. Do people coming to our hubs read them for at least 40 seconds? I have to check mine. Though the number of views is good, at the moment.

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               CYong74posted 3 years agoin reply to this

               It didnt affect mine so far. Actually, my traffic has been rising or steady since last June.

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      eugbugposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      The "X" only seems to appear at the start of the video or if you hover over it with a mouse cursor. On mobile, you must have to touch it for the x to appear.
      
      

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   Constant Jumaposted 3 years ago

   There's a cross (X) which appears momentarily, if you click on it, it will disappear. The problem is that it won't disappear for good, if you click on the article next time, that vedio will be there again. I think they should put a prompt or a proper setting where you have the choice to allow or disable it.

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      Savio Dawsonposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      I agree. But if so many people have already spoken about it and nothing has happened then I am not sure how much more we can do.

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   PaulGoodman67posted 3 years ago

   They don't seem to affect my traffic, which is rising. My earnings are also rising. So I am happy.
   
   I generally trust HP on the advertising aspect. It's in their interests to get it right after all, and  maximize revenue for them and us.

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   psycheskinnerposted 3 years ago

   I would believe they make more money but no way they get more traffic.  More than one content site has nose-dived into closure by maximizing profit and ignoring user experience

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      PaulGoodman67posted 3 years agoin reply to this

      Advertising almost never increases traffic. Views vs Revenue is a balancing act.  But there is always going to be highly visible advertising on this site because the site exists through advertising. Before the video was the large in-text ad, which people also complained about. There has never been advertising on here that people haven't got angry about. It makes one a little jaded. .
      
      HP have likely factored in the imminent Google algo change is my expectation. And if they've got it wrong, I'm sure they will just change it. The move from relying on Adsense to Hub Ads was one of the best things that happened to this site imho.

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