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YouTube is testing a more aggressive approach against ad blockers

androidpolice.com

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Re: YouTube is testing a more aggressive approach against ad blockers

#341

Post by Arcuru »

_gabe_ wrote: post #313

This is just so funny to me. Google has to have the absolute worst PR for any company I've ever seen to make this happen. Somehow, they've duped the general public (at least on HN) into believing they insert the ads into videos. All they need to do is run a marketing campaign about how as a content creator you get to decide when ads play, whether they're unskippable, and how many ads to place in your video. Blast tha…

It's possible that Google has chosen to take the brunt of the complaints to shield the creators.

Re: YouTube is testing a more aggressive approach against ad blockers

#342

Post by pengaru »

XorNot wrote: post #274
Verdex wrote: post #222

I don't really understand either side of the equation here. So, on the one hand you have people who use ad blockers. The first retort that comes to mind here is: Well, we'll take our business elsewhere. Which is odd because without ads they aren't paying and them leaving is the goal. Of course on the other hand ... when I read the title my thoughts weren't that I would be okay because I don't ad block youtube. My tho…

The key about ads and ad-blocking is simple: I don't care. I don't care about any of these companies. I don't care about their costs or business model. And I don't particularly care about their product, because it is ephemeral and optional to me. There's far too many people in "business" today who think they provide anything of any real, determinable value to me rather then a passing fancy which will be easily replac…

+1000

My first thought upon hearing this was "oh, I guess my time lost to youtube-dl + mpv of those few channels I have bookmarked will finally be reclaimed!" (assuming this breaks it)

This move makes zero sense on their part. Cutting off your addicts is a horrible approach to being a drug dealer. You always keep them hooked to your supply, if you wholly interrupt it they'll quickly seek replacement. That's literally what created the illicit opioid crisis - folks lost their prescription opioids and immediately pivoted to street dealers.

Surely youtube has better options than outright blocking users of adblockers... Why wouldn't you first just restrict the quality of videos they can access to extremely low-res. It lessens the bandwidth burden on you, and may be enough to keep them under your spell and away from the competitors supply.

Re: YouTube is testing a more aggressive approach against ad blockers

#343

Post by dybber »

miki123211 wrote: post #324

If you're on iOS, I highly recommend Yattee[1], a free Youtube app with no ads, background playback and sponsor block built-in. The way they get around App Store restrictions is by claiming that they aren't a Youtube app. They're technically a video-watching app which is supposed to be used with your own personal server. The server API they require, however, is supported by Invidious[2], an open-source, privacy-prese…

Does this exist for Apple TV as well?

Re: YouTube is testing a more aggressive approach against ad blockers

#344

Post by cewweftg »

dontknowmuch wrote: post #276
honeybadger1 wrote: post #219

I already have backed off of youtube so much because of how awful they have made the experience, this will be it for me entirely if they implement this.

There are four browser extensions I use just to clean up youtube garbage. Shouldn't have to do it, but it works well enough for me. https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/improve-youtube-%F... https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/unhook-remove-yout... https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/clickbait-remover-... https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/blocktube/bbeaicap...

Oh. Yeehah!

Thanks for some of those. What a relief.

Re: YouTube is testing a more aggressive approach against ad blockers

#345

Post by folugna37 »

I’m not sure if anyone else feels this way, but the sight of many ads on the internet makes my blood boil like nothing else. I think it’s because some ads treat your intelligence like you’re a brainwashed idiot who will fall for anything. Ads like these are the reason I use adblock.

Re: YouTube is testing a more aggressive approach against ad blockers

#346

Post by rumori »

I’ve subscribed to Youtube when I found no way to block state propaganda in my country. Instagram lets me hide ads I don’t like, while there’s no way to get rid of them on Youtube. Maybe I’m the proof that the strategy works but now I despise Youtube and Google with a passion while being surprisingly sympathetic with Instagram and happily accepting ads there. Both of them serve completely irrelevant ads for me though.

Re: YouTube is testing a more aggressive approach against ad blockers

#347

Post by kgwxd »

I'm a family premium member. After the recent price hike, it's the most expensive streaming plan I have, by a long shot. uBO does so much more than block ads and I have a no-exceptions policy on whitelisting, even when I'm paying for the service. I'm curious if they'll still try to stop me.

Re: YouTube is testing a more aggressive approach against ad blockers

#348

Post by kibwen »

mcpackieh wrote: post #309

I block ads because they're psychological warfare that corporations wage against me. I don't care how unobtrusive the ads are. I don't care if the ads don't track me. I grew up changing the channel on TV when ads came on, and ripping adverts out of magazines before sitting down to read them. I vote for billboard bans whenever I can. I have zero tolerance for ads of any sort. Advertisers have no morals, they're comple…

> I block ads because they're psychological warfare that corporations wage against me.

Preach it. Blocking ads is tantamount to washing your hands or wearing a condom. It's simply good mental hygiene.

Re: YouTube is testing a more aggressive approach against ad blockers

#349

Post by blibble »

explaininjs wrote: post #271
blibble wrote: post #213

so if you're not logged in: clear cookies and resume? that'll take what, 5 minutes to be added to the ad blocker extension

Yes, Cookies, the only possible way the engineers at 1.5T dollar company thought to identify end users.

unless they're willing to ban entire households/CGNATs, there's really not much they can do about it

(short of requiring a login to watch videos)

Re: YouTube is testing a more aggressive approach against ad blockers

#350

Post by antisthenes »

kitsunesoba wrote: post #226

This doesn't really affect me since I subscribe to premium, but something that a lot of ad-based services don't seem to grasp is why people block ads. It's because they've become increasingly obnoxious. Nobody blocked ads when they were a simple column of links in the gutter or maybe an animated GIF banner with 3 frames. No, adblockers became popular because ads kept getting more loud (both visually and audibly), in…

I started blocking ads personally when I saw the double-click ads.

You guys will know what I'm talking about - random words in text, underlined twice, which if you hover over, will get an obnoxious ad.

Google bought them not long after:

https://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/14/technology/14DoubleClick....

Ads have been obnoxious for at least 15 years already.

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