YouTube intends to be more aggressive in blocking viewers from using ad blockers while watching videos on its site. According to BleepingComputer, individuals have begun posting screenshots of a pop-up window alerting them that their player will be disabled after three videos on social networks such as Reddit.
According to the notice, YouTube would prevent them from playing videos on the platform unless they disable their ad blocker or add the website to their white list. “Ads enable YouTube to remain free for billions of users around the world,” the message adds. To avoid ads, the business recommends purchasing a YouTube Premium subscription so that “creators can still get paid.” Previously, YouTube exclusively displayed popups to ad blocker users, alerting them that it is against the website’s TOS. It eventually added a timer to the notices to guarantee that viewers read them.
The website has confirmed to BleepingComputer that the latest alerts are a test. According to a spokeswoman, YouTube is “running a small experiment globally that urges viewers with ad blockers enabled to allow ads on YouTube or try YouTube Premium.” YouTube may temporarily halt playback “[i]n extreme cases, where viewers continue to use ad blockers,” they said. The representative went on to say that they will only prevent playback “if viewers ignore repeated requests to allow ads on YouTube,” however it’s unclear if this means YouTube will not automatically block playing after three videos and will instead give viewers additional chances to comply.
For the time being, this new strategy only affects a small number of users, and YouTube has not stated how many people or locations are included in the test. The website’s ad revenue has been declining over the last three quarters, so we won’t be surprised if this test is expanded to additional users throughout the world if it proves to be beneficial.