After Alphabet Inc.’s GOOG GOOGL Google turned up the pressure on users blocking YouTube advertisements, one developer devised an ingenious workaround – using the now-obsolete Windows Phone.
What Happened: A software engineer has used the Windows Phone user agent to bypass the intrusive anti-ad-blocker notification from YouTube.
YouTube recently implemented stricter ad-blocking rules, sparking a backlash among users.
Google’s initiative to hinder ad-blocking resulted in many adblock users being greeted with a pop-up message. This prompted a burst of online posts and videos seeking to evade it. By altering the user-agent to Microsoft Corp.'s MSFT Windows Phone, users can dodge the pop-up and resume their ad-free viewing.
The irony lies in the fact that Google’s decision to exclude YouTube and other widely used Google apps from Windows Phone contributed to the platform’s demise. As such, Windows Phone’s ability to skirt Google’s ad-blocker restrictions seems somewhat poetic.
Though Google might rectify this in the future, for now, Windows Phone has clinched a triumph over the video platform several years after its demise.
Why It Matters: In August, YouTube moved to pressurize users to either watch ads by disabling their ad-blockers or pay for a premium subscription to avoid ads.
YouTube was testing a new countdown timer on its anti-ad-blocker notification, putting users under pressure to either disable the ad-blocker or subscribe to YouTube Premium.
With inputs from Benzinga Neuro.
Image credits – Shutterstock
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