If you feel like your TV volume suddenly goes up 10 decibels when ads start playing during your show, you’re not imagining it. And it’s going to start getting better. On Monday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed state Senate Bill 576, which requires streamers to turn down the ad volume.
Starting July 1 of next year, ad-supported services like streaming platforms that serve users in California will have to keep the volume of ads at the same level as the content. The law closely follows the FCC’s 2012 Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation standard, which regulates ad volumes for broadcast and cable services.
Streamers will have to prove that advertisements on their platforms don’t get louder than the shows or movies they interrupt. And it will probably benefit users outside of California too, since it will be much easier for streamers to implement these standards across the board rather than making adjustments for each user based on their location.
