In a few weeks, you
won't notice the difference!

Facing its failure to monetize the site, as well as a recent blow to site privacy in a lawsuit lost to Viacom, Google plans to launch pre- and post-roll advertising on YouTube.

Up to this point, Google has been adamant in its refusal to sully the YouTube offering with pre- and post-roll ads. The change of heart was revealed to The Wall Street Journal by unidentified sources.

YouTube is expected to generate $200 million in ad revenue for the year, significantly short of Google's expectations. The news drove analysts to speculate how much YouTube burns in operating expenses if its parent cannot turn a profit with revenue of that size, said CNet.

Since its purchase of YouTube in 2006, Google has tried to make the site profitable with a panoply of ad programs, including revenue shares creators, AdSense for Video, buzz targeting, demographic and geo-targeting, and — most recently — a do-it-yourself ad program.

The latter was critiqued for setting an unreasonably high payout bar.