In a recent test, YouTube restricts ad blocker usage!

A lot of people utilize YouTube because it provides a large variety of on-demand entertainment. Others typically rely on ad blockers, even though there is a Premium tier available for those who don't want to deal with advertisements. Last month, we learned about an experiment in which YouTube sent popups to free users informing them that ad blockers are not permitted on the service. A updated version of this dialog box is now being shown by certain users; it still uses the same language but makes reference to a new three-strikes policy.

The popup now has three numbered white boxes and the notification that the video player will be stopped after three appearances, as first noticed by Reddit user Reddit_n_Me.

The same information from the popup window from last month has returned, along with a button to trial YouTube Premium or enable adverts. The first bullet point also includes a further statement warning users to disable their ad blockers or risk having the video player disabled.

Although not entirely surprising, this is a very strong strategy from the Google-owned video streaming service to stop ad blockers. In the Reddit discussion, someone points out that uBlock Origin doesn't seem to be blocked yet. But we can't be confident about the extent of its influence because it's possible that this restriction is only being tested with a small number of people right now.

Before users started using ad blockers, they used YouTube Vanced to have a similar experience to that of Premium for free. However, due to legal pressure from Google, the service was shut down in March of last year. It appears like free users may only have the choice of either enduring adverts, including potentially unskippable 30-second slots if you're on a connected TV, or forking over money for a Premium subscription.