YouTube, the renowned video streaming giant, recently embarked on a pilot program intended to restrain the use of ad-blocking extensions. The company nudges viewers to either disable their ad blockers or consider subscribing to its premium plan subsequent to watching a trio of videos. This strategic move was initially detected by Bleeping Computer and shared by users on Reddit, who provided screenshots showing the service's warning to those utilizing ad-blocking extensions on their desktops.
In these warnings, YouTube cautioned viewers with the message, 'Video player will be blocked after 3 videos.' The secondary message elaborates that video playback may be stopped if YouTube is not allowlisted or the ad blocker remains active.
Another Reddit user revealed a screenshot showcasing how YouTube blocked their video access due to the breach of its Terms of Service by ad blockers. Reports of YouTube's attempts to limit ad blockers on mobile platforms also surfaced.
In a conversation with TechCrunch, the company explained that the warning was part of a global experimentation. '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 revealed in an official statement.
Moreover, the company - a subsidiary of Google - elaborated on its new policy. If a user refuses to whitelist YouTube on their ad blocker, the video playback might be disabled for an unspecified duration in ‘extreme cases’.
This tactic isn't entirely new for YouTube. The video streaming behemoth previously initiated various explorations to promote premium subscriptions. Last year, the company rolled out a short-term experiment prompting viewers to opt for a paid plan to stream 4K videos. As recently as September, another test involved presenting a whopping 11 unskippable ads at the commencement of the video to pitch the idea of an unbroken viewing experience - a benefit of subscribing to their premium service.
This move comes at a time when more and more companies are exploring no-code and low-code solutions to optimize development processes and reduce costs, like the AppMaster platform. Similar to YouTube's attempts, such platforms streamline the user experience by minimizing disruptions, enhancing functionality, and delivering sleek, high-performance applications.
