After '3 Strikes' (Watching YouTube Without Ads) YouTube Accuses You of Violating "YouTube's Terms of Service" (TOS), Blocks You From Watching Material (Even Your Own!)

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Sep 21, 2024,
updated Sep 22, 2024

ABOUT 4 days ago YouTube took up a notch its war on ad blocking and hours ago it seemed to have introduced a 3-strike system. So I decided to 'use up' my strikes and see what happens next.

Strike 2:

YouTube Strike 2

Strike 3:

YouTube Strike 3

After the third strike:

Notice there's no longer an "X" at the top right (to close the overlay). Clicking elsewhere has no effect. Refreshing the page results in the same page (with stubborn overlay). Still "stuck"; JavaScript acts like DRM in this context.

Welcome to the 'new' Web. So "modern"...

This means that I cannot watch even my own videos (that I opted not to have ads). It's like academic journals preventing scholars from reading their own papers (they gave to these journals for free) without buying very expensive subscription (for temporary access).

Thanks, so I violate some TOS for wanting to see a video I uploaded over a decade back? For free?

This is not free hosting. This is a lie. YouTube is dying.

The bottom part ("Not using an ad blocker? Report issue") just means you can probably contact some bot if you believe you're wrongly detected using an ad blocker.

Maybe it's time to boycott YouTube.

This is not about avoiding ads. Disabling them - or JavaScript - is a matter of computer security, privacy, and many other things. █

Also relevant: Terms of Service (TOS) Under Scrutiny - Part XVIII - In Conclusion

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