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this post was submitted on 10 Mar 2026
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Good thing YouTube itself is skippable.
What are 'ads'? 🤷🏼
I dunno. Some strange relic from the 1980s?
Kidding aside, it's shocking how bad raw YT is. We watch it via Smartube (or PipePipe as needed). I can't believe people watch "raw" youtube...it's unwatchable.
If they ever quash SmartTube and PipePipe...well..I imagine Peertube, Nebula, Libby and Curiosity stream will suddenly become a great deal more popular.
I don't think the powers that be fully grasp the (very delicate) knife edge they walk. They only stay in business so long as they aren't annoying enough to be replaced. Actually, who am I kidding - they know that exactly and play the delicate "gently gently" boil frogs in a pot game like grandmasters.
The ads seem to be pretty variable depending on usage so I suspect not everyone is seeing the same thing. I rarely use YouTube in any form. When I do and I'm rawdogging it for whatever reason, it seems like I get a few short ads, like 30s or less. They're annoying but not awful.
A friend keeps YouTube running constantly on his TV in the background while he works. He gets so many ads and they're so long! Like several minutes of ads, mostly unskippable, over the course of a 15 minute video. I don't know how people deal with that shit.
Gen X made 90 minute cassette recordings of their favorite music. Back then you could lower the volume to ignore ads and wait for the DJ to trigger your recording. Today I just use the mute on the remote and have my other device handy to watch some other content while waiting for show to come back to the main content. It’s always good to have a mantra about adverting by associating it in your head as indoctrination “Poison” which is what it is essentially.
WATCH THE ADS OR IT'S PIRACY!
My smart tube app wasn't working tonight so watched YouTube on the normal app. I can't believe people live like this, it's actually unwatchable.
Okay how good is Smart Tube for ypu? I downloaded it to my family Fire TV but my mom just refuses to use it, so we watch long, loud, unbearable ads all the time. I get that there's no algorithm to find videos, but can you import subscriptions? My mom has noticed YT never shows her a few of her subscribed channels in her recommended anymore.
yeah. I will go to look something up that I need or want to watch, but I'm often bailing halfway through that advertisement. it's not even worth my time
Seriously bro! I got revanced on my phone and smart tube next on the tv. I legit had to think about the last time I used the official app and it was nothing but angry memories. Waking up in the middle of a, and I'm not making this up, hour plus long ad! Always auto playing some ai slop bullshit about some murder or something slightly cosmological.
I was jarred by an ad playing during LOTR on HBO just now.
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Dam ads exist ? Been on YouTube Revanced for 5 years now 😂😂🖕🖕 fuck you google.
I'd very much suggest everyone try YouTube Revanced.
Though android is likely going to crack down on them before the end of the year, so new users should switch to a degoogled or open source phone OS.
Or download the videos using ytdlp, and use a cable to transfer them to your phone like it's 2012.
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We've got a business model that didn't even exist 25 years ago, and we're making insane money!
How can we fuck it up?
Nothing is ever enough
Line must go up!
Unpopular opinion but youtube + music is good value.
But my journey here was unique.
I grew up during the era when ipods / mp3 players incentivized having personal libraries of music files. After itunes became hostile towards that I switched to Google Music which allowed you to upload music files and stream them to your devices. It was great because I had some obscure remixes and indy band albums that I'd lost the CD for years ago.Ended up paying for Google Music after a 3 month trial.
Eventually Google Music became Youtube Music and with it came Youtube Premium. Tried Spotify but it didn't have some artists that I can't remember now anyways. So I just kept paying for youtube music and not seeing ads on youtube.
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You just gotta love the headline in the article, it's trying to sell it as a great new feature
VRC Non-Skip ads are now generally available, allowing brands to reach TV audiences with Google AI.
It is for their target audience. They're not talking to you, they're talking to their customers.
Oh I know, and that is sort of the point that their customers apparently hate humans
What's the end game with YouTube? Will it eventually cut all videos and show nothing but ads?
The ironic part is that there was a time where I'd watch hours long compilation videos of funny ads, and even now I watch 90s nostalgia ones set to vaporwave mixes. Hell, every person and their grandmother I knew at one time watched the Superbowl "just for the ads".
At some point, the goal of marketing shifted from "How do we keep your attention/whimsy" to "How can we force unwilling participants to comply?" Fuck that fascismo shit.
That's always been the goal of marketing.
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Thanks, Google. I was trying to cut down my usage of YouTube.
What are the best Fedi alternatives?
When I checked the Fedi alternatives were far-right hangouts. Part of that unfortunate "free speech absolutist" == "asshole" phase.
It's not Fediverse but I like Nebula. It's more like a co-op so I don't mind paying for it at all.
Not fediverse, but Nebula is good
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Time to double down on the adblocks, then. I get it conceptually, but I still don't understand this need for infinite growth at everyone's expense.
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Fuck Reddit and Fuck Spez.
If they just made the ads unintrusive people wouldn't bother installing adblockers. But sure make the ads longer and see what happens.
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For everyone saying they'll leave YT, Google knows there are nine that won't, so they'll keep pushing till they hit the wall where this becomes unprofitable for them.
Personally, if it ever gets to the point that I can't avoid ads on YouTube, I will stop watching, except for the occasional tutorial that I can't find an alternative for--so maybe, a couple of times a year.
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