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Boycott YouTube in favor of other video services? Pay for YT Premium? Why spend so much energy bypassing compensation for an otherwise free service? It just pu

Boycott YouTube in favor of other video services? Pay for YT Premium? Why spend so much energy bypassing compensation for an otherwise free service? It just pushes more ads in front of less sophisticated users or encourages producers to lock all content behind paywalls.

vetinari 3y ago
Note that when paying for YT premium, you have to be logged in. Google will still collect the data, build your profile, just not show you the resulting ads on youtube. But they will use that data to show you targeted ads elsewhere. Plus now you cannot invalidate that data by dropping cookies, etc.
- atomicfiredoll 3y ago
  This is one of the many reasons that Google has never had me as a paying customer, even though I like YouTube's content enough to pay something for it. Over the years, things like this have eroded the trust I have for Google to effectively zero. Instead I pay other services like Nebula to watch creators I first discovered on YouTube. Unfortunately, most creators don't have an alternative like this in place.
  - lern_too_spel 3y ago
    What makes you think Nebula doesn't do the same thing?
    - atomicfiredoll 3y ago
      Like I said, there are several factors in my decision making. At this point I assume most services will eventually succumb to enshittification. So, bouncing between ships, bailing as they start to sink feels like the name of the game. It's not necessarily that I trust Nebula, it's that I don't trust the advertising company, Google. That said, some other reasons that work in Nebula's favor are that the creators seem to be involved in the ownership and they can publish material without the fear of YouTube's demonetization. The value proposition isn't exactly one to one and goes beyond the advertising/funding.
charles_f 3y ago
Have you seen YouTube with ads? They slap 2-3 15s ads in a 5m video. It's unwatchable.
- paulryanrogers 3y ago
  Yes, and that has not been my experience. Perhaps the creators you enjoy are more aggressive about monetization?
k12sosse 3y ago
Happily paying my $10 for YT premium. Best value of $10 a month I can get in this economy. Thousands of hours watched ad-free, and supporting the platform and the creators.
- fsflover 3y ago
  https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36807803 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36807803
LispSporks22 3y ago
I don’t want to be logged in. I don’t want them invading my privacy.
- paulryanrogers 3y ago
  Sounds like a boycott is the only real solution for you.

vetinari 3y ago

Note that when paying for YT premium, you have to be logged in. Google will still collect the data, build your profile, just not show you the resulting ads on youtube. But they will use that data to show you targeted ads elsewhere. Plus now you cannot invalidate that data by dropping cookies, etc.

atomicfiredoll 3y ago
This is one of the many reasons that Google has never had me as a paying customer, even though I like YouTube's content enough to pay something for it. Over the years, things like this have eroded the trust I have for Google to effectively zero. Instead I pay other services like Nebula to watch creators I first discovered on YouTube. Unfortunately, most creators don't have an alternative like this in place.
- lern_too_spel 3y ago
  What makes you think Nebula doesn't do the same thing?
  - atomicfiredoll 3y ago
    Like I said, there are several factors in my decision making. At this point I assume most services will eventually succumb to enshittification. So, bouncing between ships, bailing as they start to sink feels like the name of the game. It's not necessarily that I trust Nebula, it's that I don't trust the advertising company, Google. That said, some other reasons that work in Nebula's favor are that the creators seem to be involved in the ownership and they can publish material without the fear of YouTube's demonetization. The value proposition isn't exactly one to one and goes beyond the advertising/funding.

charles_f 3y ago

Have you seen YouTube with ads? They slap 2-3 15s ads in a 5m video. It's unwatchable.

paulryanrogers 3y ago
Yes, and that has not been my experience. Perhaps the creators you enjoy are more aggressive about monetization?

k12sosse 3y ago

Happily paying my $10 for YT premium. Best value of $10 a month I can get in this economy. Thousands of hours watched ad-free, and supporting the platform and the creators.

fsflover 3y ago
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36807803 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36807803

LispSporks22 3y ago

I don’t want to be logged in. I don’t want them invading my privacy.

paulryanrogers 3y ago
Sounds like a boycott is the only real solution for you.