https://gizmodo.com/you-can-now-watch-ad-supported-movies-for-free-on-youtu-1830525396 A spokesperson for Google, YouTube's parent company, told Gizmodo that it introduced the "free to watch" section to its site in October, though reports of the feature just started surfacing last week. The company declined to say how regularly you'll see ads while you're watching, but the Verge noted that pop-ups from YouTube's commercial advertisers "appear at regular intervals."