YouTube TV's ad-free 'Zen' breaks are becoming ads – 9to5Google

One of the few breakaways users are able to get from ads during shows or movies on YouTube TV is the peaceful Zen Mode, which generally depicts a quiet and relaxing scene. Now, that feature is starting to incorporate sponsored text, effectively interrupting the zen. Due to the nature of YouTube TV, there are often spaces in ad breaks during TV shows and movies. Because the service is essentially streaming cable, it can’t always insert commercials of it’s own perfectly. To fill that gap, YouTube TV makes use of its “zen mode,” which offers a peaceful scene with calming music to fill the gap. Generally, it appears after a user hits “skip ad” during a commercial break. This beloved little space of peace and quiet is apparently becoming compromised, according to users on Reddit. During the playback of picturesque landscapes and calming music, some are now seeing a line of text appear across noting a new sponsor. In one specific instance, a “This break brought to you by Progressive” appeared for one user in bold branding across the scene. There are a couple of trains of thought to this. One is that the zen mode is meant to be a
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