YouTube started its crusade against ad blockers on the web last year, and now it has started the exercise to stop third-party blocker apps as well. YouTube had previously pointed out that the reason for its policy is to get more people to pay for the platform is for the company to pay creators for their efforts and content.
These changes have already spelt trouble for ad blocker companies, who have reportedly seen thousands of people uninstall the apps as YouTube now restricts its use on browsers. Most of the people dropping out their ad blocker have been using YouTube on Chrome browser. YouTube suggests the best way to avoid seeing ads between videos is to pay for its Premium service. YouTube is blocking the apps that use YouTube’s API to push ad-free videos for users which is the case with most apps for mobile users.
YouTube started the exercise with a three-strike rule for videos, giving people enough time to stop using ad blocker and let ads show for all videos on their profile as long as they wish to use YouTube for free. We independently tested this theory on YouTube using an ad blocker to see if the videos stop playing but we saw a message flash on the interface warning people to upgrade their free YouTube plan right away.
Having interruptions for the mobile users is definitely going to cause a lot of distrust and anger among its users who have enjoyed the platform ad-free for years.
Once again, YouTube says you can opt for the Premium service and go ad-free with the same account on multiple devices. You also have the YouTube Premium family option that gives ad-free YouTube and background playback for up to 5 people in a household.
The platform is likely to come under scrutiny from antitrust bodies and we expect YouTube to counter these charges in some form.
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