YouTube is stepping up its efforts to combat ad blockers. More users are now reporting issues with video playback when using AdBlock or similar browser extensions. When detecting an ad blocker, the platform now opens a warning message which gives users the option to disable the blocker, whitelist YouTube, or subscribe to YouTube Premium.
According to Christopher Lawton, YouTube's communications manager, the push to promote Premium is the reason behind these new restrictions. While YouTube had previously experimented with disabling video playback for ad block users in June, Lawton referred to it as a "small global experiment."
YouTube states that the use of ad blockers goes against its terms of service. The platform emphasizes that advertising plays a crucial role in supporting creators worldwide and allows billions of people to enjoy content on YouTube.
In May, YouTube introduced unskippable 30-second ads to its TV app, and later tested longer but less frequent ad breaks. The aim was likely to encourage more users to subscribe to the premium service.
In August, YouTube began testing a modified alert for free users, featuring a countdown timer. This pop-up prompts free users to upgrade to YouTube Premium.
Recently, an expert discovered that the YouTube ad blocker for videos can be bypassed by replacing the browser's user agent parameter with "Windows Phone" - the name of Microsoft's mobile operating system.
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I don’t use any add-ons in my browsers! However, I use AdGuard Home in my router. Almost a million domains in my filter lists. Also have a filter for Google with over 6000 domains that I block. For YouTube, I use a front end instead.