No ad blockers allowed on YouTube

[boredjedi]

I
The instant ads appear on Max I will drop it. Not like I watch it much anyway, just once in awhile my girlfriend and I watch something on Max or Netflix. Usually a big budget movie like Avatar 2 or Dune.

I cannot stomach ads in general. On a computer they are far worse because they often contain malware. As Scotty would say "I'll not lower the shields."

That might be coming sooner than you think. Not only is Disney increasing their prices and doing away with password sharing.
They are also contemplating or are doing a tiered service. No ads being the highest price and the base price with ads.

[chuft]

I wonder if the cable dvr's let you skip commercials. That was a big feature of the physical devices.

Where are all those streaming channels coming from? Is she paying money to Roku? Hard to believe there's ad free streaming out there, how would they pay the bills.

[chuft]

I never had much interest in Disney. I am sick of all the superhero stuff, eventually it gets boring and repetitive, and the Star Wars reboots were just awful, and the milking of the franchises with all these derivative TV shows just has no appeal. Everything original has been milked dry, watered down, and had all life sucked out of it. Don't care for modern animated films either, I prefer the original ones from the 1970's. Nothing on that channel to attract me really.

[boredjedi]

I wonder if the cable dvr's let you skip commercials. That was a big feature of the physical devices.

Where are all those streaming channels coming from? Is she paying money to Roku? Hard to believe there's ad free streaming out there, how would they pay the bills.

Well with Spectrum it doesn't appear there is a skip commercial feature.
Lame. If I remember correctly, I think one of my VCRs had that feature.
There was some sort of signal that broadcast TVs would transmit that would signal commercial transition.

Everything comes with the Roku TV no charge (yet). There are a few channels listed as Streaming on Demand channel. Some are listed
as free some with a fee. The majority of the other channels are free and there's no subscription fee.

Oh I did come across this looking up Spectrum DVR skip commericials

Say goodbye to the cable box: Spectrum is switching to a streaming device

Updated: Oct. 17, 2023, 6:22 p.m.| Published: Oct. 17, 2023, 8:00 a.m.

Spectrum is replacing its cable set-top boxes with the Xumo Stream Box, a coaster-sized device that streams the company's cable programming and gives customers access to more than 250 subscription-based and ad-supported streaming apps. (Spectrum)

Syracuse, N.Y. -- Spectrum is phasing out the ubiquitous cable box and replacing it with a coaster-sized device it hopes will help it compete better against streaming TV services.

The company recently introduced the Xumo Stream Box, which allows customers to stream the cable channels they have until now received through clunky cable set-top boxes.

As for Disney and even DC, yeah these super hero movies have gotten outta control.
The only one I liked these past 10+ years is Guardians of the Galaxy. That was it. I was never into the MCU at all.
Even the Chris Nolan Batman movies from the latter part of 2000's. Meh.
I was just using Disney as an example of ad service etc..

[chuft]

I wonder what would make the streaming device better than the set-top box. Seems like they're just both devices connected to a cable connection somehow and controlled with a remote. Why would one be clunkier than the other.

When you say "Roku TV" I am not sure if you mean the actual television set, or a Roku streaming stick plugged into a USB port and receiving internet signals over wifi from your router/modem/wifi thingie across the room. That's what I have. A little Roku stick thing plugged into my Samsung TV. Use it to get Prime, Max, Netflix etc channels. Of course I need logins for each.

The Roku menu does advertise some channels but I never pay attention to them.

[boredjedi]

the Star Wars reboots were just awful,

Oh don't get me started on that one. And now what Kathleen Kennedy did to Indiana Jones.
She has turned the prequels into Academy Award level movies
and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Like Star Wars ended with the Return of the Jedi,
Indiana Jones ended with The Last Crusade.

[boredjedi]

I wonder what would make the streaming device better than the set-top box. Seems like they're just both devices connected to a cable connection somehow and controlled with a remote. Why would one be clunkier than the other.

When you say "Roku TV" I am not sure if you mean the actual television set, or a Roku streaming stick plugged into a USB port and receiving internet signals over wifi from your router/modem/wifi thingie across the room. That's what I have. A little Roku stick thing plugged into my Samsung TV. Use it to get Prime, Max, Netflix etc channels. Of course I need logins for each.

The Roku menu does advertise some channels but I never pay attention to them.

Roku has the streaming boxes, firesticks and Roku TVs with the Roku built in the TV along with the
Digital TV tuner for the air broadcast. 3 HDMI, AV connections and the Digital Tuner (Live TV with Streaming Channels)
It's a 55 inch.

[chuft]

I'm usually gaming, or reading stuff online like medical journals, or hanging on forums like this or gaming Discords, in the evenings, so I almost never watch TV. Just not a watcher by nature, I tend to prefer more interactive activities. Have cut way back on my forum time, used to spend a lot of time on BoardGameGeek but I basically cut that out this year almost entirely. Been there maybe twice. Honestly Pokemon Go has expanded to fill a lot of time this year, even in the evenings due to the PvP stuff and planning my collections around it.

[boredjedi]

I'm usually gaming, or reading stuff online like medical journals, or hanging on forums like this or gaming Discords, in the evenings, so I almost never watch TV. Just not a watcher by nature, I tend to prefer more interactive activities. Have cut way back on my forum time, used to spend a lot of time on BoardGameGeek but I basically cut that out this year almost entirely. Been there maybe twice. Honestly Pokemon Go has expanded to fill a lot of time this year, even in the evenings due to the PvP stuff and planning my collections around it.

I only put the TV on when going to bed and turn youtube on most of the time and fall asleep to some science thing.
Occasionally some Tolkien stuff. I'm really enjoying two specific channels. Tolkien Untangled, he's in the middle of
a complete retrospect on the Children of Hurin. I pretty much know the story already but it's still enjoyable.
The other channel is GirlNextGondor (I see what she did there heh). She delves deep into the lore again enjoyable.
They don't upload everyday either they take their time on the material which is good.

Keep meaning to hook the computer up to it and try out the 4k 55" inch gaming.

Do you still have your board games?

[chuft]

You watch YouTube on the tv? How does that work? I guess you have to sign in.

Yeah I have my board games but haven't been active with them much this year for one reason or another. We actually started playing Hogwarts Battle this past weekend but got screwed by the game so I think we are going to start over. Haven't really done much solo gaming this year. Table has been hogged for most of the year by that Hogwarts game. I just haven't had the energy really for solo play. Was playing a lot of 40K Gladius earlier in the year and Pokemon Go starting in the spring.

[boredjedi]

You watch YouTube on the tv? How does that work? I guess you have to sign in.

Yeah I have my board games but haven't been active with them much this year for one reason or another. We actually started playing Hogwarts Battle this past weekend but got screwed by the game so I think we are going to start over. Haven't really done much solo gaming this year. Table has been hogged for most of the year by that Hogwarts game. I just haven't had the energy really for solo play. Was playing a lot of 40K Gladius earlier in the year and Pokemon Go starting in the spring.

No not signed in. I get a popup every now again when I first go on "for a better experience log in with your account". I haven't noticed a difference in experience other than having
no ad-blocker. I also get pop ups every now again for Youtube premium. The one thing I hate about those ad breaks is you never know when that ad is going to cut in.
Nothing more annoying when it does it right in the middle of a conversation.

But it's an app you install on the Roku just as you would Netflix, Prime, HBO etc. They are all apps. When you first get any Roku device,
they usually come with the more popular apps pre-installed. The youtube app has never been pre-installed for some reason.
Either with the stand alone streaming box or TV. You go to the Streaming Store on the main page and install whatever streaming app is available for the Roku.

The first clip I watched last night when I went to bed heh
He uses the brave browser as well. It's a good video.

Cool was just wondering I remember at one point you were getting rid of some of your boardgame collection a while back wasn't sure if you kept going.
I think it was my fault dragging you back into Pokémon. Wasn't that around the time I finally broke down and installed it and have been playing it nonstop
since as well. heh

[chuft]

Online advertising doesn't work. It's a corrupt setup where the marketing exec of a company gets a big salary to manage their marketing and digital advertising is an easy way to do it, and of course the ad provider, who has the company as a client, also profits. The company itself does not because ads don't generate more sales. This has been shown over and over but especially in 2020 when a lot of companies stopped their online advertising to cut costs, and noticed it didn't affect their sales at all.

https://marketinginsidergroup.com/ma...yone-knows-it/


https://hbr.org/2021/02/what-digital...ing-gets-wrong


https://www.forbes.com/sites/augustinefou/2021/01/02/when-big-brands-stopped-spending-on-digital-ads-nothing-happened-why/


This has been known for quite some time. From 2014

https://www.theatlantic.com/business...at-all/372704/


Targeted ads, the whole idea behind Google's creepy stalker business model, in particular don't work because you are showing ads trying to convince, say, someone to buy a 40K computer game, who was going to buy one anyway. Their interest in 40K is what got them that targeted ad, but the ad is not telling them anything they don't already know. To actually get more customers, you'd have to target people who weren't going to buy a 40K computer game, and convince them to buy one, and targeted ads by definition are terrible at that. Companies are realizing this and cutting ad spending, and this is why a lot of these advertisers are having losses in ad revenue.


I can't say whether YouTube has miscalculated or not because I don't know how most people will react. But I do think they overreached and got too greedy. Mainstream streaming services have similar costs per month but they deliver high quality content, much of it original. People also tend to turn them on and off each month based on what is on. I know people who constantly switch Service A off and Service B on, binge on Service B to catch up on all its shows and see the movies it has on that month, then next month turn it off and turn on Service C to binge on that one's content. They don't stay subscribed to each service all year. They read articles like "What's coming to, and what's leaving, Netflix this month" and decide whether to pay for it that month or not.


I simply don't watch enough TV to bother with such things but serious streaming consumers do. Since YouTube simply does not have that kind of high quality content that can be binged on for a month or two and then turned off for six months while you watch something else, the price tag seems extreme. Main thing I use it for is music for gaming, and there are music services like Apple Music or Amazon Music that are going to be better. There are some other videos I watch now and then like 40K lore videos, but that isn't worth $14 a month to me, no way. Most content on YouTube is amateur content, often the people's voices are annoying, and the information is not vetted or trustworthy.


If they charged $1 a month I think they would get virtually all of the casual people who watch stuff now and then and who hate ads. It would be $12 a year more than they are getting now from all the people using ad blockers. And they could charge more for 4K, Netflix already does. A flat $14 for everyone just seems like greed, but they know their user base better than me.


There are certainly a lot of people addicted to YouTube who watch hours of it every day. I work with some people who already have premium plans and have for years. Then again I work with others who have very sophisticated anti-ad mechanisms in place, from what DNS they use, to ad blockers in their browsers, to raspberry pi's acting as routers to block a large variety of ad-related domains, they go to extreme lengths to avoid ads and malware.


There is just no way I am going to get my money's worth out of it at that price. And the ads totally ruin any kind of long form video where atmosphere is important.

For music YouTube has crappy quality. Apple Music is cheaper and better quality, as an example.

Apple offers three tiers of higher resolution audio: CD quality (16-bit/44.1kHz), Apple Music Lossless (up to 24-bit/48kHz), and Hi-Res Lossless (up to 24-bit/192kHz). You can choose your quality through the Settings > Music > Audio Quality section of Apple Music.

All of Apple Music's 100-million-strong music catalogue is now available in CD quality or Apple Music Lossless. Over 20 million tracks were accessible in the highest quality Hi-Res Lossless format at launch in Summer 2021, and the streaming giant seems to have made good on its promise to bring the entire catalogue – in Lossless, at least – by the end of 2022.

Now you can get higher quality music that YouTube videos via YouTube Music - but that is another service, not what you get for $14 a month from YouTube Premium. Given my casual interest level and large CD collection, I am willing to put up with YouTube's low quality audio, but not at that price. No way. For less than that I could get much higher quality audio.

Or, more likely, I would just spend the money buying an album every month on Amazon and downloading the mp3's to use locally on my computer and phone when I didn't feel like streaming it. If I spent $140 a year on buying mp3's I'd end up actually owning a lot of new music at the end of the year, and supporting the artists, while with YouTube I end up with neither.

I got one of those ad block notices today at work when I clicked on a news link that I didn't realize went to a tube instead of a written article (I vastly prefer to read).

I just tried to watch a 40K lore video. After the opening few frames I saw this



That little notice at the top left is a link that goes here

https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/10588440



I am not sure whether this is something to do with this ad blocker battle, or another way for content creators to cash in. I don't recall seeing anything like that before, and it only lasts a few seconds. That Premium Miniature Painting logo goes away (no sound or anything) after a few moments as well. This does not seem like the kind of obnoxious ads I keep hearing about, that suddenly appear with louder sound, advertising some hentai waifu AI, or Asian women overseas looking to date much older men, etc.

Meanwhile below there are what look like youtube ads for their own channels:





I don't recall seeing those before either. But again, not the obnoxious intrusive video ads I keep hearing complaints about. Maybe my ad blocker is still keeping those at bay. No notice to unblock or be cut off yet.


This video reminds me I spent a lot of time earlier this year playing Mechanicus, a PC game. The video clearly is lifting graphics and sound from the game.

[LazyPooky]

Somehow I read something about this a while ago, somehow ended up in my mailbox, and found the link from last June 30.
https://techcrunch.com/2023/06/30/yo...e-in-new-test/

Looks like it's still in experimental stage.

“We’re running a small experiment globally that urges viewers with ad blockers enabled to allow ads on YouTube or try YouTube Premium,” it said in a statement.

Additionally, Google said that if users don’t allow YouTube on the ad blocker, it may disable playback for some time in “extreme cases.”

The company has also conducted some experiments to push people to premium subscriptions in the past. Last year, it briefly ran a test asking users to purchase a paid plan to watch 4K videos. Last September, it even tested showing up to 11 unskippable ads at the start of the video for an uninterrupted experience.

[boredjedi]

Online advertising doesn't work. It's a corrupt setup where the marketing exec of a company gets a big salary to manage their marketing and digital advertising is an easy way to do it, and of course the ad provider, who has the company as a client, also profits. The company itself does not because ads don't generate more sales. This has been shown over and over but especially in 2020 when a lot of companies stopped their online advertising to cut costs, and noticed it didn't affect their sales at all.




That little notice at the top left is a link that goes here

https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/10588440

When that adpocalypse happened when was that 2017/2018 on youtube it wasn't just the drama with PewDiePie but companies where coming out with statements
that they weren't making back what they were spending in ads on youtube. The companies were just using PewDiePie as an excuse at first. I've never bought
anything because of ads but doing my research in products and such when needed. And I guess I don't have the greed gene where when I see an ad for say "$1000 instantaneously
by clicking this link" and fall for it heh.

That "includes paid promotion" is a way for content creators to supplement their ad income. Either the content creator will
approach a company for sponsorship or the company will contact the creator. That has cons as well. The more recent case is
Established Titles that a lot of content creators, including the LOTR ones, took on and were paid to set aside about 10-20 seconds in their
video to promote the product. The worst are those pump and dump bitcoin scams.

That Established Titles is as I had always thought. A scam.

Lordship & Ladyship Title Packs
Purchase a personal Lordship or Ladyship Title Pack with dedicated land in Scotland.

One square foot of dedicated land on a private estate in Eddleston, Scotland and a printable certificate with a crest, making it the perfect gift for anyone, anywhere.

It was being advertised not as joke but as a serious thing. Buy a square inch of some foresty area in Scotland and become a Scottish Lord or Lady.
And people were falling for it left and right.

I simply don't understand what's going on over at youtube. They got me again! This time I sent disputes.
I was watching this video about this competing Snow White movie in the works vs Disney's new Live Action Snow White.

All I commented was "In the meantime, everyone can just watch Rammstein's Snow White themed music video Sonne. 😄"
About 20 seconds later, this pops up. And of course the comment was deleted so I can't take a screenshot.



This time they put me on time out for 24 hours.
I just don't get it. If youtube keeps this up, Rumble is going to have a massive influx of users.

[boredjedi]

Somehow I read something about this a while ago, somehow ended up in my mailbox, and found the link from last June 30.
https://techcrunch.com/2023/06/30/yo...e-in-new-test/

Looks like it's still in experimental stage.

They've been working on that since the beginning of the year.
I've noticed it when I would get this black screen on a video,
not all the time and it dies down for a long time them pops up again,
the looping circle would twirl and then I'd get the "skip ad" prompt.
So yeah they've been trying to punch past the ad-blockers.