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Unskippable Snapchat ads are here

You'll watch, whether you like it or not.

Headshot of Andrew Lanxon
Headshot of Andrew Lanxon
Andrew Lanxon Editor at Large; Lead Photographer, Europe
When he's not testing the latest phones or phone cameras, Andrew can normally be found with his own camera in hand or behind his drums or eating his stash of home-cooked food -- sometimes all at once.
Expertise Smartphones, photography, iOS, Android, gaming, outdoor pursuits. Credentials
  • Shortlisted for British Photography Awards 2022, Commended in Landscape Photographer of the Year 2022
Andrew Lanxon
Snapchat on an iPhone

Get ready for ads.

NurPhoto/Getty

Six-second ads are appearing on Snapchat, and they can't be skipped. 

Snapchat began testing the new ad format -- first spotted by AdAge -- in the US on Monday. These unskippable video ads, aka commercials, are only running in Snapchat Shows, not across the entire app.

This means that you won't see the ads if you're simply watching your mates' video clips where they're trying out dog-ear filters -- at least not yet anyway. 

The Snapchat Commercials act much like commercial breaks on TV. Remember those? So far, Samsung and the movie Deadpool 2 are among the first to appear in the new ads.

Update, 9:56 a.m. PT: Adds more information on the Snapchat Commercials.