Google urges YouTube users to abandon ad blockers, promoting YouTube Premium for an ad-free experience. The subscription costs vary from ₹139 to ₹1,290 for different durations.
Initially testing the crackdown in June, YouTube confronted ad-blocking users, insisting they enable ads or opt for YouTube Premium during video streaming.
As an escalation, YouTube now introduces a five-second delay before loading videos for ad-blocking users, leading to “suboptimal viewing.”
YouTube emphasizes their intent: “To support a diverse ecosystem of creators globally… urge viewers with ad blockers enabled to allow ads on YouTube or try YouTube Premium.”
Christopher Lawton of YouTube mentions that disabling ad blockers should alleviate issues, although some users may still encounter temporary loading delays until their browser refreshes.
Google’s measures have prompted a significant number to uninstall ad blockers in October, as reported by Wired. However, an increased number of ad blocker installations reflects users seeking alternatives bypassing Google’s premium subscription prompt.
