by Joe Lonergan

An ad blocker is a piece of software that, when installed in your web browser, helps prevent ads from displaying on web pages.

If you are a user of an ad blocker and you like using YouTube, be aware that Google is starting to clamp down on the use of ad blockers on their sites. If you use an ad blocker you will start to notice annoying messages popping up on your screen saying ad blockers are not allowed. It continues with a message explaining that ads make YouTube content free to watch and then encourages you to sign up for YouTube Premium if you do not want to watch ads. Then soon you will be blocked from watching videos on the platform.

I suppose it is understandable that YouTube would try and do this as it makes most of its revenue from ads and of course, the content creators make revenue from ads too and without them, there would be no YouTube.

If you do not use an ad blocker this will not affect, you. So, what to do if you do use an ad blocker?
So first if you want to keep watching videos on YouTube for free you will have to disable your ad blocker or find an ad blocker that allows some chosen sites through its gates and add YouTube to the allowed list.

Another option that will suit some is to pay for YouTube Premium, which costs €11.99 for individuals and €17.99 for a family package for up to five members. This will include some advanced features such as downloading music and videos for offline play, and Background play which allows you to listen to videos in the background when using other apps or even when the screen is locked. But of course, we are not advertising it just mentioning it as an option for those who consider it worth the outlay.

Another suggestion could be to have a separate browser like Microsoft Edge or Firefox for YouTube and Chrome for your main browser or whichever is your preference. If you are finding this change is causing you issues, please contact the Labs team for more advice.