YouTube's Anti-Adblock and uBlock Origin • Hacker News Board

Re: YouTube's Anti-Adblock and uBlock Origin

#41

Post by crop_rotation » Sun, Oct 29, 2023, 7:27 PM UTC

frebdo wrote: post #36

crop_rotation wrote: post #9

Apart from the Youtube stuff, the post also highlights something else, entitlement towards free services like uBlock origin. > It’s one thing to play cat and mouse with YouTube. It’s quite another to deal with a wave of angry users. > And then one of the moderators actually deleted their Reddit account. “The ID in the post wasn’t updated because my mother was hospitalized,” they said. It’s sad to see them leave becau…

These services have had years to set up privacy-preserving micropayment systems. Instead they want your PI and a monthly fee, all the while using network effects to create defacto monopolies. Why are these big tech monopolists so entitled?

I am talking about free and open source products like ublock origin and not YouTube itself. Entitilement towards youtube can be debated, entitlement toward uBlock origin is just bad behaviour.

Re: YouTube's Anti-Adblock and uBlock Origin

#42

Post by frebdo » Sun, Oct 29, 2023, 7:27 PM UTC

hotnfresh wrote: post #28

philipwhiuk wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If they didn't have such entitlement they wouldn't be blocking the ads in the first place.

"I sent you data so you have to use all of it exactly the way I want" is the entitled perspective.

As opposed to the so un-entitled "customers have no right to negotiate use of their data".

ACCEPT THE EULA PLEB

Re: YouTube's Anti-Adblock and uBlock Origin

#43

Post by tomComb » Sun, Oct 29, 2023, 7:27 PM UTC

kiernanmcgowan wrote: post #27

This ad block debate makes me think about patio11’s post “The optimal amount of fraud is non zero”. Essentially in trying to make a system as fraud-free as possible you make it too difficult to work with / the cost of fighting fraud is higher than the cost of the fraud. Ads vs Ad Blockers seem to be in that space, but on the cost of customer good will. Can YouTube squeeze more money from ads by doing this? Sure. Is i…

I doubt YouTube is going for zero. I suspect they only took action recently because ad blockers have become very common.

Re: YouTube's Anti-Adblock and uBlock Origin

#44

Post by sircastor » Sun, Oct 29, 2023, 7:28 PM UTC

Analemma_ wrote: post #7

CuriouslyC wrote: post #4

YouTube will "lose" the war, but they'll make adblocking difficult enough for a while that it might get some premium subscribers in the short term in exchange for the loss of goodwill.

If you're neither paying YouTube any money nor watching their ads, meaning you're a pure money sink, why should they care about your goodwill?

Nobody using the site is a pure money sink. Every video watched, in what order, on what topics, is data contributed to the machine. The fact that you’re blocking ads is even useful information.

Re: YouTube's Anti-Adblock and uBlock Origin

#45

Post by frebdo » Sun, Oct 29, 2023, 7:28 PM UTC

crop_rotation wrote: post #41

frebdo wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

These services have had years to set up privacy-preserving micropayment systems. Instead they want your PI and a monthly fee, all the while using network effects to create defacto monopolies. Why are these big tech monopolists so entitled?

I am talking about free and open source products like ublock origin and not YouTube itself. Entitilement towards youtube can be debated, entitlement toward uBlock origin is just bad behaviour.

Such is my reading comprehension on Saturday lol

Re: YouTube's Anti-Adblock and uBlock Origin

#46

Post by dylan604 » Sun, Oct 29, 2023, 7:28 PM UTC

crimsontech wrote: post #20

CuriouslyC wrote: post #4

YouTube will "lose" the war, but they'll make adblocking difficult enough for a while that it might get some premium subscribers in the short term in exchange for the loss of goodwill.

I paid for premium for a while but had to use scripts to block the “other people watched” and other junk like shorts showing in my search results. Eventually I stopped my subscription and used adblockers instead. I use YouTube to search for videos on subjects I want to watch, but it seems that Google want YouTube to be like a TV channel where you just turn it on and watch what they show you.

No TV channel that I've watched has stopped a few minutes into a program and asked me if I was still watching requiring interaction for the content to continue playing. Ever.

Re: YouTube's Anti-Adblock and uBlock Origin

#47

Post by bravoetch » Sun, Oct 29, 2023, 7:29 PM UTC

ketzo wrote: post #8

Why, from first principles, should YouTube allow this? Why shouldn’t they go thermonuclear? I understand ads are annoying - I block as many as I can! - but I’ve never seen someone put together a coherent defense of the practice.

Here's my defense of ad-blocking: Autonomy.

Re: YouTube's Anti-Adblock and uBlock Origin

#48

Post by LordShredda » Sun, Oct 29, 2023, 7:29 PM UTC

frebdo wrote: post #36

crop_rotation wrote: post #9

Apart from the Youtube stuff, the post also highlights something else, entitlement towards free services like uBlock origin. > It’s one thing to play cat and mouse with YouTube. It’s quite another to deal with a wave of angry users. > And then one of the moderators actually deleted their Reddit account. “The ID in the post wasn’t updated because my mother was hospitalized,” they said. It’s sad to see them leave becau…

These services have had years to set up privacy-preserving micropayment systems. Instead they want your PI and a monthly fee, all the while using network effects to create defacto monopolies. Why are these big tech monopolists so entitled?

If we're going through the hassle of micropayments and other unnecessary beggar stuff, when why rely on some big company to take a cut of the money? Just setup a bank account and host your videos on a simple web hoster. If you're not willing to learn how to use wordpress then don't complain about youtube putting ads.

Re: YouTube's Anti-Adblock and uBlock Origin

#49

Post by meiraleal » Sun, Oct 29, 2023, 7:29 PM UTC

ketzo wrote: post #8

Why, from first principles, should YouTube allow this? Why shouldn’t they go thermonuclear? I understand ads are annoying - I block as many as I can! - but I’ve never seen someone put together a coherent defense of the practice.

Why do you ask? Because it would cause them more harm than benefit. They have thousands of people working on that and this is the conclusion they got so far.

I never used youtube without adblock and won't ever use it. I hope they block adblocks so it become so annoying that better options start to appear again.

Re: YouTube's Anti-Adblock and uBlock Origin

#50

Post by crop_rotation » Sun, Oct 29, 2023, 7:29 PM UTC

ls612 wrote: post #38

Shekelphile wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think they will lose. The average luddite doesn't care about seeing ads and will look perplexed at you if you tell them about ad blockers. Other services injecting ads into video streams have already been 'winning' for years. Ultimately youtube will push the envelope until even the people paying for premium will be seeing ads and savvy people will move on to pre-downloading videos and stripping ads from them…

I suspect it’ll be like Twitch where they tried hard for a while and then stopped because of the diminishing returns. YouTube will probably shake out everyone who doesn’t really understand tech and then find they are spending the same amount for less gains. And then the situation will stabilize again.

Where did twitch stop? Unless you do more and more custom shenanigans, uBlock origin has not blocked twitch ads for a long long time, and the ads are extremely repetitive.