Åkestam Holst: Ikea’s prerolls are so long and boring you’ll probably keep watching them

Everyone hates prerolls, right? How quickly would you skip one was three minutes long and really!!! Boring?

What if it was as boring as everyday life?

That’s what Åkestam Holst is presenting on behalf of Ikea. And it’s doing so to try to outwit the Skip button.

Ikea is the brand that says it draws inspiration for everyday life. Yet its Where Life Happens ads have tended to be heartwarming, heartbreaking, very much engaging…and reasonably short.

The new ads on the other hand, are proudly long and proudly beige. In fact they’re called , and can be described as, Irresistible Pointless TrueView Ads.

They’re meant to put a smile on your face by showing – and applauding – just how boring most people’s lives actually are. You can skip them – in fact, the actors in the ads ask you to do that – but that’s unlikely. People are watching the 5+ min ads. Perhaps expecting – or hoping that something – surprising happens. Spoiler alert – nothing does.

[Apologies for the spelling in the titles below]