The company doesn't think this will cause too many problems. Cards and end screen video links are more effective, YouTube said. For third-party links, it wants you to use video descriptions, channel pages or even your channel artwork.

YouTube told us this will remove existing in-video notifications, which could lead to some awkward moments in videos where presenters point to pop-ups that no longer exist. On the balance, though, this appears to be positive news if you're a YouTube fan. It should mean fewer intrusions while you're viewing on the web, and fewer creators going out of their way to plug one video while you're watching another.