YouTube Tests New Ad Blocking Measures and Viewing Restrictions

YouTube is Breaking Ad Blockers Again and Testing Viewing Restrictions

YouTube is adopting a more aggressive stance on ad blockers, experimenting with new systems to deter users from utilizing them. Recent measures have included a three-strike policy for ad blocker users and the option to skip or mute videos entirely. While ad blocking tools have managed to bypass YouTube’s efforts so far, the platform is now trialing new methods that could significantly complicate ad blocking.

According to insights from SponsorBlock, an add-on that detects and skips sponsor segments in videos, YouTube is experimenting with server-side ad injection. This technique involves stitching ad segments directly within videos and delivering the entire package to viewers, rather than merging them from two different sources on the browser or app.

This approach makes it more challenging for ad blockers to pinpoint where the ad starts and ends. It could also disrupt other add-ons like SponsorBlock, as video timestamps would no longer be consistent across all instances of the video. Another potential issue is the inability to skip ads.

Notably, the SponsorBlock team mentions in a FAQ that this doesn’t signify the end of ad blocking tools, but it does make their implementation more complex. Some users, particularly on the uBlock Origin subreddit, have encountered ads even while using the plugin.

Limited Logged-Out Access

Additionally, another noticeable change could pose more significant issues for third-party applications. A bug reported on the NewPipe GitHub earlier this month indicates that Google is requiring some users to log in before watching a video. This appears as a security check with the message: “Sign in to confirm that you’re not a bot.” The issue was also highlighted on X by developers of the content-grabbing tool cobalt.

This suggests that YouTube might restrict logged-out video access in the future, compelling users to sign in to view content. This would make YouTube resemble a traditional streaming video service more closely but could negatively impact third-party apps and how shared YouTube videos are viewed across the web.

The cobalt developers have found a way to bypass these login restrictions, but any future changes by YouTube could potentially break this and other tools.

Both methods are still in the testing phase, and it’s uncertain if or when YouTube will implement these measures more broadly. In the meantime, let us know if you’ve encountered any of these measures. We’ve reached out to YouTube for comments and will update this article if or when we receive a response.