JAKARTA - YouTube is reportedly taking action against users who try to avoid their ads and refuse to play videos until the blocker is deactivated or they sign up for a Premium subscription.
As reported by Reddit user, Sazk100, who posted a pop-up warning message picture while trying to watch videos on YouTube while blocking ads in their browser.
The warning contained that ad blocking was not allowed on YouTube. And then explained where ads allow YouTube to remain free for billions of users around the world.
The company also asked users to "Turn off your ad blocking or subscribe to YouTube Premium," the warning read.
Those who are reluctant to choose one of these options will not be able to watch videos on the platform at all. Users are then given two options, namely allowing ads to play, or register for ad-free YouTube Premium subscriptions.
YouTube Premiun costs around 11.99 US dollars (Rp176 thousand) per month or 119.99 US dollars per year (Rp1.7 million), a price that is not friendly in the pockets of the lower middle class in Indonesia.
If users decide to subscribe to YouTube Premium, they will benefit from such as removing ads, offline downloads and including access to YouTube Music.
The move turned out to be part of a globally limited test conducted by Alphabet's platform, to ensure advertisers continue to get the most views.
"We are running a small global experiment urging viewers with ad blocking enabled to allow ads on YouTube or try YouTube Premium," a YouTube spokesperson told Bleeping Computer, quoted Friday, May 12.
"The detection of ad blocking is nothing new, and other publishers regularly ask viewers to disable ad blocking," he added.
Alphabet reported that it had experienced a decline in its third-quarter ad revenue in a row at the end of April, driven by a volatile digital advertising market and wider economic uncertainty.
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