Issuu Pro enables you to control the sidebar for your embeds and standalone publications. On Issuu the sidebar will still be present on your publication, but only on the info page. This is standard for everyone. Once you click the publication to go fullscreen, the sidebar is disabled for Pro members (on free accounts it's visible here too).

Also, free accounts show Google ads on the info page, but Pro users don't have those ads.

If you want to completely opt out of our community, you can upload your publications as private (Upload / Publishing options / Private).