YouTube has found a new way to bypass ad blockers by integrating ads directly into video content via "server-side ad insertion," complicating the detection and blocking of ads. How will ad blockers respond?
Can I ask why people act like YouTube is so evil for trying to make money off their site? They provide a service I value and it costs money to do so. No disrespect to anyone who doesn’t want to watch ads or pay (like I do, I use it a LOT) but I don’t understand why some people seem to be personally insulted by the idea that they can’t get it for free forever with no strings attached.
Google has likely operated youtube at a big loss since buying it. But instead of finding ways to sustainably grow the service, they absorbed all the cost and offered unmatched convenience over the decades. I’m referring to unlimited uploads, anonymous public viewing, high quality streams, and availability all over the world. All this time it costed Google lots of money, but they kept it all free with the purpose of dominating the video sharing market.
The problem is that nowadays youtube has turned practically into a public utility. Schools, many workplaces, many companies use it, and it’s embedded everywhere. In recent years Google has made lots of effort into squeezing their userbase for money, likely because they are trying to make this profitable. That results in lots of enshittification, and it is us who need to deal with it now.
It is very hard to just quit youtube, it’s like trying to not use a smartphone in the modern age, or trying to live without whatsapp (in some countries). You have to give up lots of things to fully quit, and be negatively affected in some ways.
In a better timeline we would have multiple video sharing websites with clear payment structures, that grow sustainably, have clearly defined limits, and all have a substantial chunk of users. That’s why I think it would be eventually good if youtube goes like twitter and requires an account for anything. They would give up their public service position, and allow creators and users to move into better platforms.
So all in all, it puts people like me in a bad position.
I don’t use any Google service, I have no account with them and thus not agree with their ToS
I can perfectly find alternatives, besides youtube.
I am often forced to see it when it’s embedded, when it’s shared in friend groups, family groups, and sometimes work groups
That forces me to deal with their shitty website
The only compromise is using invidious in my home network. I don’t deal with their shit…
Like many, this is not a money issue. I pay for Twitch/Netflix/Prime. I can afford yt premium, but for what little usage I have it’s not worth it.
I pay other sites for creators. So for me $$ isn’t the issue. Not when premium is less than 20.
The biggest issue with YouTube for me is that their ads are very intrusive/track quite a bit about what you do/can actually be malware. On addition, there’s a good chance that money is mostly going to YouTube and not the people creating their works. There’s a reason patreon is a thing for most successful creators. I also hate ads. I don’t hate people getting paid, I hate YouTube for shoving ads down my throat and then turning around not paying people their dues. And in my opinion the worst way possible.
I pay for Nebula - $30 a year which is about £22.50. That won’t even cover two months of YouTube Premium (£12 pm), and there’s not even the discounted yearly option in the UK.
And “if you’re not paying you’re the product” is wrong - YouTube/Google would still be datamining my viewing habits to sell to advertisers.
YouTube is/ its ads are are extremely privacy intrusive and there isn’t really an alternative to the platform. Next to the comparatively obvious network effects all social media platforms rely on is also because YouTube on its own is not that profitable and probably only really makes Google money via the data collected on the platform. This means only platforms that have a gigantic ad network themselves and are able to monetize said data as well as Google can can actually compete with YouTube— and as you see, there are basically none.
Also, the whole blocking ad blockers thing is trying to fundamentally reverse the power equilibrium between the website (the server) and the person visiting it (the client); because for the last 40 years or so, the server had the purpose of delivering content to the client which could decide what to do with and how to present said content.
This sharing of responsibility between the two comes in many forms, starting with simple things such as screen readers or a reading mode for the browser.
Partially for the same reason I don’t pay for Xbox live and whatever Nintendo and Sony have; I refuse to pay a service charge for an online platform when I already purchased the hardware (in this case, computer/phone) and pay an ISP for internet access.
If they want my data and to use my bandwidth they can damn well pay for it.
Can I ask why people act like YouTube is so evil for trying to make money off their site? They provide a service I value and it costs money to do so. No disrespect to anyone who doesn’t want to watch ads or pay (like I do, I use it a LOT) but I don’t understand why some people seem to be personally insulted by the idea that they can’t get it for free forever with no strings attached.
Honest question, please don’t flame me 🙏
This is my issue with it, hopefully it’s clear
Google has likely operated youtube at a big loss since buying it. But instead of finding ways to sustainably grow the service, they absorbed all the cost and offered unmatched convenience over the decades. I’m referring to unlimited uploads, anonymous public viewing, high quality streams, and availability all over the world. All this time it costed Google lots of money, but they kept it all free with the purpose of dominating the video sharing market.
The problem is that nowadays youtube has turned practically into a public utility. Schools, many workplaces, many companies use it, and it’s embedded everywhere. In recent years Google has made lots of effort into squeezing their userbase for money, likely because they are trying to make this profitable. That results in lots of enshittification, and it is us who need to deal with it now.
It is very hard to just quit youtube, it’s like trying to not use a smartphone in the modern age, or trying to live without whatsapp (in some countries). You have to give up lots of things to fully quit, and be negatively affected in some ways.
In a better timeline we would have multiple video sharing websites with clear payment structures, that grow sustainably, have clearly defined limits, and all have a substantial chunk of users. That’s why I think it would be eventually good if youtube goes like twitter and requires an account for anything. They would give up their public service position, and allow creators and users to move into better platforms.
So all in all, it puts people like me in a bad position.
Like many, this is not a money issue. I pay for Twitch/Netflix/Prime. I can afford yt premium, but for what little usage I have it’s not worth it.
I pay other sites for creators. So for me $$ isn’t the issue. Not when premium is less than 20.
The biggest issue with YouTube for me is that their ads are very intrusive/track quite a bit about what you do/can actually be malware. On addition, there’s a good chance that money is mostly going to YouTube and not the people creating their works. There’s a reason patreon is a thing for most successful creators. I also hate ads. I don’t hate people getting paid, I hate YouTube for shoving ads down my throat and then turning around not paying people their dues. And in my opinion the worst way possible.
I pay for Nebula - $30 a year which is about £22.50. That won’t even cover two months of YouTube Premium (£12 pm), and there’s not even the discounted yearly option in the UK.
And “if you’re not paying you’re the product” is wrong - YouTube/Google would still be datamining my viewing habits to sell to advertisers.
YouTube is/ its ads are are extremely privacy intrusive and there isn’t really an alternative to the platform. Next to the comparatively obvious network effects all social media platforms rely on is also because YouTube on its own is not that profitable and probably only really makes Google money via the data collected on the platform. This means only platforms that have a gigantic ad network themselves and are able to monetize said data as well as Google can can actually compete with YouTube— and as you see, there are basically none.
Also, the whole blocking ad blockers thing is trying to fundamentally reverse the power equilibrium between the website (the server) and the person visiting it (the client); because for the last 40 years or so, the server had the purpose of delivering content to the client which could decide what to do with and how to present said content. This sharing of responsibility between the two comes in many forms, starting with simple things such as screen readers or a reading mode for the browser.
Partially for the same reason I don’t pay for Xbox live and whatever Nintendo and Sony have; I refuse to pay a service charge for an online platform when I already purchased the hardware (in this case, computer/phone) and pay an ISP for internet access.
If they want my data and to use my bandwidth they can damn well pay for it.
Do you realize you’re using their bandwidth, too? They have to pay for upload/download just like you do.
Noooo, this is Lemmy. If it isn’t free to use and 20% as good as the paid version, its evil.