youtube embeds no longer working - crash ppt on playback (mac)

Tony Jenkins 0 Reputation points
2025-11-25T20:18:54.6066667+00:00

For about a month now, ppt has failed to play embedded YouTube videos. The videos won't load - and/or ppt will immediately crash when I get to a slide with a YouTube video on it.

These are presentations I've used for years.

I'm using ppt version 16.103.2 (education edition - license held by my university).

I'm running Sonoma 14.7.6 on my mac.

FWIW - I often run these presentations on a PC in the classroom - they crash there as well.

I've tried following other posts here for fixes, but none are working.

I've also un-installed any ppt add-ons.

Microsoft 365 and Office | PowerPoint | For education | MacOS

3 answers

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  1. Keaton Bell 5 Reputation points
    2025-12-02T19:24:10.0666667+00:00

    I am having this same problem, which appeared at around the same time. Upgrading to Sonoma 14.8.2 unfortunately did not fix the problem. I have Sonoma 14.8.2 installed and PowerPoint for Mac Version 16.103.3. Every embedded YouTube video that worked reliably for years now causes PowerPoint to become immediately non-responsive. Please advise, Microsoft. Note that this problem only occurs when I'm connected to a second monitor, using presenter view on one screen and displaying the slides on the other. I don't seem to have a problem when not connected to a second screen (but I do need to be able to show my slides this way).

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  2. Tony Jenkins 0 Reputation points
    2025-11-26T17:24:54.9033333+00:00

    I updated to Sonoma 14.8.2 and it seemed to fix the issue with the recent ppt updates.

    I'll return to this thread if the issue continues.

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  3. Anonymous
    2025-11-26T03:09:30.46+00:00

    Dear Tony Jenkins
    Welcome, and thank you for sharing your issue in the Q&A forum.
    Based on the information you provided, I’m truly sorry to hear that you’re experiencing problems with PowerPoint not playing embedded YouTube videos and even crashing on both macOS Sonoma and PC. I’ll work with you to find a solution. From my own testing environment (macOS Sequoia and PowerPoint version 16.103.2), the results were successful, embedded videos worked normally, even those longer than 5 minutes. Important note: When embedding videos in PowerPoint, you must ensure a stable internet connection throughout both the editing and presentation process.

    Here are the steps I followed, which you can try:

    1. Using a YouTube URL
    • Open PowerPoint and select the slide where you want to insert the video.
    • Go to Insert > Video > Online Movie… (on Mac).
    • Copy the full YouTube link Paste the URL into the dialog box and click Insert. The video will appear on the slide.

    You can:

    • Resize by dragging the corners.
    • Test playback using the Play button.

    Note: This method requires an internet connection during the presentation, and the video must be Public or Unlisted (Private videos are not supported).

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    1. Using Embed Code
    • On YouTube, click Share > Embed, then copy the HTML code.
    • In PowerPoint: Insert > Video > Online Video > From a Video Embed Code. Paste the code and click Insert.

    Note: On Mac, iframe embed code support is not always stable. Microsoft recommends using the URL method instead.

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    1. Download and Insert Offline
    • Download the YouTube video to your computer (format: MP4, codec H.264/AAC).
    • In PowerPoint: Insert > Video > Movie from File…. Select the MP4 file and click Insert.
    • Advantages: Works without internet. Less risk of crashing.
    • Disadvantage: Increases the PPTX file size.

    4.Playback Settings

    • Select the video > go to Playback Tab:
    • Start Automatically or On Click. Loop Until Stopped if you need it to repeat.
    • Always test before presenting to avoid network or codec issues.

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    5.If the issue persists, we recommend checking your version and considering a rollback to a previously stable build. This depends on how you installed Office:

    If installed from the Mac App Store:

    If installed from the Microsoft Website (Retail/Web Download): You can roll back by:

    • Uninstalling your current version of Office.
    • Visiting the Update history for Office for Mac page and downloading the installer package for a stable older version (e.g., 16.100 or 16.99).

    After updating or rolling back, to prevent automatic updates:

    • Go to Word > Help > Check for Updates.
    • Uncheck Automatically download and install.

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    • Alternatively, if your computer can update macOS, you may consider upgrading to a newer version such as Sequoia, which appears to be more compatible with the current PowerPoint build.

     We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your patience while this issue is resolved. We hope these steps are helpful. If you need further assistance or have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’re here to support you.

    If the answer is helpful, please click on "Accept Answer" and please vote in favor. If you have any additional questions about this answer, please click "Comment".

    Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable email notifications if you want to receive the notification for this thread.

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