A new feature called "ad breaks" on Instagram pauses your browsing to show an advertisement before you can go on. Users who noticed these irresistible advertisements in their feeds on Reddit and Twitter noticed the functionality. Subsequently, Instagram acknowledged that it is trying this new kind of advertisement (via The Verge). The irresistible advertisements haven't been made a permanent fixture yet. Instagram will make that determination in light of the testing.

These ad interruptions have been seen by users when they browse through articles and stories. The application pauses after a certain period of scrolling and displays an ad break symbol along with a countdown meter that indicates how long you have to wait before you can continue scrolling.

"Ad breaks are a new way to see ads on Instagram," the social media platform says when you press the button for further information. You might occasionally have to watch an advertisement before continuing to browse."

These unskippable ad breaks go beyond the sponsored posts and commercials that Instagram now shows in your feed and Reels. This appears to be a very disruptive move with the obvious goal of increasing value for advertising. Users' feeds on Instagram already contain postings from profiles they do not follow. Several users have expressed dissatisfaction at viewing multiple posts from unidentified accounts before seeing the images and videos published by the persons they are genuinely following.