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J77
Reel Rookie

Commercials partially covering screen while episode is playing

I haven't watched the Roku channel for a few months, & only recently started watching it again. I noticed that now, when watching an episode and you pause it, a big orange ad with a QR code pops up talking about a "minute clinic at CVS". I understand this ad showing when the episode is paused. But 4 times tonight--in the space of maybe 20 minutes--this huge ad has popped up WHILE the episode is playing! No other ads play over/on the episode when this ad is up. Just this one ad, covering 1/3 of the TV screen.

So I'm watching the episode, then all of a sudden this huge orange ad pops up & covers 1/3 of my TV screen, blocking much of what is happening in the episode. And it STAYS up, blocking the screen. I don't know how long it stays up--I always lose patience & back out of the episode after 4 or so minutes. I then go back in & resume watching the episode, & find the ad has disappeared. Until it pops up again a few minutes later, covering 1/3 of the screen.

Exiting & re-entering the episode, just to get rid of this popup ad for a few minutes, is a big hassle. Does anyone know of any way to prevent this ad from popping up while in the middle of an episode?

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5 REPLIES 5
makaiguy
Community Streaming Expert

Re: Commercials partially covering screen while episode is playing

I watch The Roku Channel app a little but I've never seen ads like that.

Which of the various options under The Roku Channel are you watching when you encounter this?  Any particular program or episode so we can check this out?

Roku Community Streaming Expert
I am not a Roku employee, only a user like you.  Please, no support questions via private message -- post them publicly to the Community where others may benefit as well.
If this post solves your problem please help others find this answer by clicking "Accept as Solution.".

Streaming Stick 4K+ 3821 | Streaming Stick+ 3810 | TCL Roku TV 43S245/C107X
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J77
Reel Rookie

Re: Commercials partially covering screen while episode is playing

I do not post on websites, so I am very new to all of this. Is the "I am not a Roku employee" message from makaiguy? If so, was my reply considered a private message???

I thought makaiguy WAS a Roku employee, & if my reply WAS a private message, then I need to ask--is this reply right here also a private message? Or is it a public one?

Again, I have no idea how this works--this is my first time posting on a website, so I don't know what I'm doing. I was just feeling desperate, so thought I'd reach out, before abandoning the Roku channel & watching my shows on different channels that don't block 1/2 the screen with ads.

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makaiguy
Community Streaming Expert

Re: Commercials partially covering screen while episode is playing

@J77-

You'll see many of us have signatures that get appended to the end of all our messages below a separation line.  That's what you were reading in my first reply (and in this one), where it says I am not a Roku employee.  That's because I'm not a Roku employee, just a user like you, just as it says.

This is primarily a user-helping-user support forum.  There are some Roku employees here as forum moderators who clearly identify themselves in their usernames.  Roku has identified a handful of forum users that they've found to be particularly knowledgeable and helpful and designated them as "Roku Community Streaming Experts" as is indicated in their signatures.

Your posts so far, and everything you're reading now, are publicly available posts.  Private messages are sent to a single individual who can access them via the little envelope icon near the upper right corner of the forum page when they are logged in.  You have to jump through some special hoops to send private messages, so that's not something you can do without knowing it at the time. To send, click on the username at the top of the intended recipient's post, then click on the purple "Send this user a private message" button (on a narrow screen you may have to scroll down a ways to see the button).

If you'd like help with your initial question, please answer the questions I asked in my first reply.

Roku Community Streaming Expert
I am not a Roku employee, only a user like you.  Please, no support questions via private message -- post them publicly to the Community where others may benefit as well.
If this post solves your problem please help others find this answer by clicking "Accept as Solution.".

Streaming Stick 4K+ 3821 | Streaming Stick+ 3810 | TCL Roku TV 43S245/C107X
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J77
Reel Rookie

Re: Commercials partially covering screen while episode is playing

Thank you for explaining. Actually, I did answer your questions. I received your response via email, so I thought it was an email. I hit <reply>, answered the questions, then sent it (Thurs. 1:41 am). I guess you didn't get it, so here it is again. I appreciate any/all help. Thanks.

 

I'm not very familiar with technical stuff, but I'll try to describe it--I would LOVE for someone to figure this out--it's enough to force me to start watching this show on another channel. I watch the Roku channel on Roku--I have the Roku box that I use, so I go to the screen that s hows all the channels I've added, then I select the Roku channel itself. It loads up, then I go down to "Continue watching" & select Space 1999--that's the show I've been watching lately.
 
This ad--just the one ad, BTW--has shown during episodes 12 & 13 for sure, & I think episodes 10 & 11. Whenever I pause the episode, this ad pops up. Like I said, I understand that. But this showing up & covering 1/3 of the screen, WHILE the episode is playing, that's something different.
 
This ad will pop up unpredictably. Of the times I've "timed" it, one time it appeared after I'd been watching the episode 15 or so minutes. A few minutes ago, it came up within 1-2 minutes of my starting the episode. This last time, it was 4-1/2 minutes after I started watching.
 
What is the same every time this ad stays up until I exit the episode. I only timed it once, but it was still up when I gave up 5 minutes after it popped up (& I then exited the episode).
 
I don't know if this has anything to do with anything, but another thing I've observed is a difference in options while watching an episode. For instance, several days ago, I could pause the episode & have the options of captions & 2 other options (can't remember them exactly). I could then arrow down to "more to watch" & see various selections, starting with the next episode in the series. (A nice, quick way to progress t/o the next episode.) Now, I only have the "captions" option, nothing else, no arrow down, nothing.
 
In desperation, I even re-set/re-started the entire Roku (unit? program?), in case that might affect/change things, but it didn't.  I hope this info is helpful, & you can determine what is going on. (Otherwise, I'll be forced to delete this channel & watch my TV elsewhere.) In either case, I appreciate your efforts.
 

 

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makaiguy
Community Streaming Expert

Re: Commercials partially covering screen while episode is playing

@J77-

Nope, haven't received the email.  It probably went to the source of the email you received, which would be the email server for this forum, not me.  

Anyway ...

I went into The Roku Channel and did a search for Space 1999.  It gave me two options, to go directly to it or to access via starting a free trial for Shout TV.  Since you made no mention of Shout TV, and not wanting to start a free trial, I went directly to it and loaded Series 1, Episode 11 "The Guardian of Piri".  Aside from the episode's weird storyline, Rudy Gernreich bell bottom uniforms, and cheesy special effects, I didn't see anything unusual.  I paused the program several times for as long as 10 minutes and no ads of any kind popped up, nor did any ads superimpose themselves when I let the program run to its completion.  So I don't know what to suggest.

This was on my Streaming Stick 4K+, model 3821X, running Roku siftware 11.5.0 build 4313-CU. (Info found via Settings  > System > About).

The Roku Channel version 8.0 build 72. (Found by highlighting channel on home page channel grid then orestsinh * key on Roku remote)

 

Roku Community Streaming Expert
I am not a Roku employee, only a user like you.  Please, no support questions via private message -- post them publicly to the Community where others may benefit as well.
If this post solves your problem please help others find this answer by clicking "Accept as Solution.".

Streaming Stick 4K+ 3821 | Streaming Stick+ 3810 | TCL Roku TV 43S245/C107X
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