The internet has become absolutely overrun by ads, as they are one of the most direct ways to generate revenue from a wide range of content. This is especially true on YouTube, where just about anyone can make money my recording a video. Over the past decade or so, as ads have increased in number, various tools have popped up to help clear out the trash and give users their freedom back.
One of the most prominent of these ad-blocking solutions was Adblock Plus. However, the popular ad blocker’s days of success have been numbered for a while now, and it looks like Google has hammered yet another nail in the coffin by blocking YouTube from loading when Adblock Plus is detected in your extensions.
At the time of writing, the issue only appears to be tied to Google Chrome, so its likely that Adblock Plus still works in other browsers. That said, it might be time to abandon the extension if you still use it, just in case it gets the axe in other places in the near future. Tom’s Guide was one of the first to spot the issue, though other comments on Reddit have noted similar results — as well as some recommendations for what other ad blocker to use if you want to view YouTube without any ads.
Google’s ongoing war against ad blockers
This move is just another in Google’s long-standing fight to eke out as much ad revenue as it can from the various services that it offers. And while it makes sense to brick adblockers like Adblock Plus on sites like YouTube — where content creators rely on ad revenue to help fuel their content — many still find the number of ads on the website hard to stomach.
There are also safety reasons you might not want to see ads, as malware being spread through less-than-reputable ads has been an ongoing concern. I’m not sure this is as much of a problem anymore, or on YouTube proper, but it’s also hard to fault users for wanting an ad-free experience when they can be as overwhelming as they feel sometimes, especially considering past reports of unskippable, hour-long ads showing up on the site.
While Adblock Plus will no longer work on YouTube for Chrome users, you can still rely on other extensions to get around the ads. Additionally, if you’re able to, the most reliable way to block ads on YouTube will always be to subscribe to YouTube Premium. It also gets you some other perks, like offline downloads, access to YouTube Music, and even enhanced video quality options. Of course, paying a subscription every month isn’t always feasible for everyone, so it’s not hard to see why ad blockers are still among the first extensions many people install when setting up a browser.
