YouTube to disable videos for accounts caught using ad blockers

YouTube is pushing for even more people to start paying for YouTube Premium following a new crackdown on ad blockers on the website.

There’s no doubt that the frequency of ads on YouTube has increased quite a bit in recent times, which is rather convenient for the video sharing platform since it provides its own, paid-for solution to that very problem in the form of YouTube Premium. As well as access to YouTube Music Premium, video downloads and background play, the subscription service’s main perk is that it removes all ads, allowing for a seamless viewing experience. This costs £11.99/$11.99 a month, which is pretty wild when you consider that in the UK, that’s more expensive than the standard tier of Netflix.

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Anyway, even though plenty of people do subscribe to YouTube Premium, many others simply choose to tolerate the adverts or use ad blockers to remove the issue altogether. However, as reported by Bleeping Computer, those doing the latter could soon find themselves unable to watch any videos at all.

First highlighted by Reddit user Reddit_n_Me, people using ad blockers on YouTube may now find themselves greeted with a pop up, which states that the “video player will be blocked after three videos”. Furthermore, it reads: “Video playback will be blocked unless YouTube is allowlisted or the ad blocker is disabled.”

Speaking to Bleeping Computer, YouTube said: “We’re running a small experiment globally that urges viewers with ad blockers enabled to allow ads on YouTube or try YouTube Premium.” The company also clarified that video playback will only be temporarily disabled “in extreme cases, where viewers continue their use of ad blockers”.

It’s not known how long this “experiment” will last for, or whether it marks the start of a larger-scale crackdown, but needless to say, proceed with caution if you use an ad blocker on the site.