YouTube has announced a crackdown on third-party ad-blocking apps that violate its terms of service in a move to strengthen its enforcement measures.
In a post on the official YouTube Community Help forum titled "Enforcement on Third Party Apps," the company emphasizes its commitment to block anti-advertising tools.
"Viewers who are using these third-party apps may experience buffering issues or see the error 'The following content is not available on this app' when trying to watch a video," YouTube wrote.
The video streaming platform also stressed that Ads on YouTube support creators and does not allow third-party apps to turn off ads because it prevents them from being rewarded for viewership.
Ending the statement, the company touted its YouTube Premium, which offers users an entirely ad-free experience.
YouTube Shuts Down Popular Third-Party Adblockers
This move follows the recent closure of "YouTube Vanced," a widely used third-party app offering features such as ad-blocking and background playback without a premium subscription.
"NewPipe" is another app that provides ad-blocking functionalities. One user posted on X that it's already "unusable."
Guys, I think it's safe to say that #Newpipe has become completely unusable. I can't do anything with it.
— Aqualizard (Sobblefan is my fave💙) (@SprinklyG) April 14, 2024
Google, YouTube's parent company, has clarified that it would permit third-party YouTube apps that comply with its API Services Terms of Service.
As of now, no known apps are taking up this offer.
YouTube started its crackdown in late 2023, intentionally delaying loading videos for users using third-party adblockers.
To intensify its efforts, it also implemented pop-up notifications that restrict video playback for ad-blocking app users until they whitelist or disable the tool.
Editing by Katherine 'Makkie' Maclang