In an effort to create a non-intrusive, viewer-initiated advertising experience, Hulu has begun beta testing its new Pause Ad feature during select paused content. Longer, invasive and unwanted ads will be replaced with shorter, interactive clips, which will still be personalized to each viewer. As soon as the content is unpaused, the ad will disappear completely. 

The streaming service has already conducted extensive user testing on Pause Ads, finding that customers preferred subtle ads with less length, sounds, and visuals. Hulu stated that the new approach to Pause Ads has received positive feedback from users. Currently, there are two components to the Pause Ad experience: “ad creative supported by contextually relevant messaging along with a background gradient to distinguish the ad from the content scene.”

To further test the new Pause Ads experience, Hulu will be working with two of its beta advertising partners, Coco-Cola and Charmin. Hulu anticipates the new experience will launch on select content within the Hulu streaming library by Q2 2019. The ads will also only appear in Hulus $5.99 basic tier service. 

“As part of our ongoing investment in non-disruptive advertising and Hulu’s leadership in the transformation of TV advertising, we’re excited to bring this new, unique opportunity for storytelling to the market and can’t wait to release it more broadly to our partners,” said Hulu in a statement.