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Using an ad blocker (and not paying for a subscription in the case of YouTube) isn't the "user making their own choices", it's stealing content. If a creator p

Using an ad blocker (and not paying for a subscription in the case of YouTube) isn't the "user making their own choices", it's stealing content. If a creator puts up ads or a paywall, it's because they want to be compensated. You should either respect their wish or simply not view their content.

basilgohar 2y ago
I understand this perspective, but I disagree with it. If someone wants to use a public space (i.e., the Internet), then they have accept that technological solutions to annoyances are also part of that. Block it with a subscription if you don't accept this reality. But getting the benefits of a free, global audience doesn't entitle the artist to any means of revenue they choose, including what annoys and harms people. It's like saying you have to walk the long way around to your exhibit through the concessions hall before seeing my display, when someone can just take a shortcut and skip that, and blaming them for doing so.
- dismalaf 2y ago
  > But getting the benefits of a free, global audience The benefit of the audience is literally the ad views (or Premium views).
- carlosjobim 2y ago
  A restaurant is also a public space. But you can't eat for free or behave as you wish there.
  - asadotzler 2y ago
    If the restaurant puts food on the public sidewalk I'm free to pick it up. The internet is not inside of someone's business, they are inside of it. It is a public space and if they publish without a paywall, I'm free to consume that how ever I like. Your analogy is ridiculous and makes you come across as a simp for Big Advertising.
    - carlosjobim 2y ago
      Sigh. Why can't you write three sentences without resorting to insults? Usually people behave like that when they know they are wrong.
    - dismalaf 2y ago
      > If the restaurant puts food on the public sidewalk I'm free to pick it up. If someone leaves their purse on the sidewalk and you just take it, you're committing a crime. Consuming a restaurant's food without paying for it is also a crime. It being on the sidewalk doesn't make it not their property (or the property of whoever paid for it). > The internet is not inside of someone's business, they are inside of it. It is a public space and if they publish without a paywall, I'm free to consume that how ever I like. There's already many court precedents that no, you can't consume it "however" you like. For example, all copyright laws apply. Ad blockers are a grey area in that yes, they're not disallowed, but that also means that companies are allowed to mess with you more or less however they want (YouTube for example throttles browsers with active ad blockers).
asdfasdf1 2y ago
using an ad blocker is the ONLY option to avoid adds. You can pay evilcorp for a subscription/premium account/whatever and they'll still try to force you to watch 10 minutes of adds for a 1 minute video. Fuck them. We own them nothing. Banksy said it better: People are taking the piss out of you everyday. They butt into your life, take a cheap shot at you and then disappear. They leer at you from tall buildings and make you feel small. They make flippant comments from buses that imply you're not sexy enough and that all the fun is happening somewhere else. They are on TV making your girlfriend feel inadequate. They have access to the most sophisticated technology the world has ever seen and they bully you with it. They are The Advertisers and they are laughing at you. You, however, are forbidden to touch them. Trademarks, intellectual property rights and copyright law mean advertisers can say what they like wherever they like with total impunity. Fuck that. Any advert in a public space that gives you no choice whether you see it or not is yours. It's yours to take, re-arrange and re-use. You can do whatever you like with it. Asking for permission is like asking to keep a rock someone just threw at your head. You owe the companies nothing. Less than nothing, you especially don't owe them any courtesy. They owe you. They have re-arranged the world to put themselves in front of you. They never asked for your permission, don't even start asking for theirs.
- dismalaf 2y ago
  > using an ad blocker is the ONLY option to avoid adds. You can pay evilcorp for a subscription/premium account/whatever and they'll still try to force you to watch 10 minutes of adds for a 1 minute video. Fuck them. We own them nothing. On YouTube? No. I pay for Premium, there's no ads.
  - HanClinto 2y ago
    I pay for YouTube Premium. I'm thankful that it exists. I still get sponsored segments in the middle of my videos (from the content creators themselves). I haven't (yet) installed SponsorBlock -- currently, I have no plans to, but I do fast-forward to skip those commercials in the middle of the videos. I pay for Amazon Prime, and they've started showing me preroll ads on my streaming content. I also still get sponsored product recommendations in my search list. I pay for Kagi search. Thankfully, this area is still relatively clean.
godshatter 2y ago
Accessing a web page using standard protocols with no authentication and filtering what I want to see of it on my computer is not stealing content. YT might want me to do something else, but I am not bound by their wishes.

basilgohar 2y ago

I understand this perspective, but I disagree with it. If someone wants to use a public space (i.e., the Internet), then they have accept that technological solutions to annoyances are also part of that. Block it with a subscription if you don't accept this reality. But getting the benefits of a free, global audience doesn't entitle the artist to any means of revenue they choose, including what annoys and harms people. It's like saying you have to walk the long way around to your exhibit through the concessions hall before seeing my display, when someone can just take a shortcut and skip that, and blaming them for doing so.

dismalaf 2y ago
> But getting the benefits of a free, global audience The benefit of the audience is literally the ad views (or Premium views).
carlosjobim 2y ago
A restaurant is also a public space. But you can't eat for free or behave as you wish there.
- asadotzler 2y ago
  If the restaurant puts food on the public sidewalk I'm free to pick it up. The internet is not inside of someone's business, they are inside of it. It is a public space and if they publish without a paywall, I'm free to consume that how ever I like. Your analogy is ridiculous and makes you come across as a simp for Big Advertising.
  - carlosjobim 2y ago
    Sigh. Why can't you write three sentences without resorting to insults? Usually people behave like that when they know they are wrong.
  - dismalaf 2y ago
    > If the restaurant puts food on the public sidewalk I'm free to pick it up. If someone leaves their purse on the sidewalk and you just take it, you're committing a crime. Consuming a restaurant's food without paying for it is also a crime. It being on the sidewalk doesn't make it not their property (or the property of whoever paid for it). > The internet is not inside of someone's business, they are inside of it. It is a public space and if they publish without a paywall, I'm free to consume that how ever I like. There's already many court precedents that no, you can't consume it "however" you like. For example, all copyright laws apply. Ad blockers are a grey area in that yes, they're not disallowed, but that also means that companies are allowed to mess with you more or less however they want (YouTube for example throttles browsers with active ad blockers).

asdfasdf1 2y ago

using an ad blocker is the ONLY option to avoid adds. You can pay evilcorp for a subscription/premium account/whatever and they'll still try to force you to watch 10 minutes of adds for a 1 minute video. Fuck them. We own them nothing. Banksy said it better: People are taking the piss out of you everyday. They butt into your life, take a cheap shot at you and then disappear. They leer at you from tall buildings and make you feel small. They make flippant comments from buses that imply you're not sexy enough and that all the fun is happening somewhere else. They are on TV making your girlfriend feel inadequate. They have access to the most sophisticated technology the world has ever seen and they bully you with it. They are The Advertisers and they are laughing at you. You, however, are forbidden to touch them. Trademarks, intellectual property rights and copyright law mean advertisers can say what they like wherever they like with total impunity. Fuck that. Any advert in a public space that gives you no choice whether you see it or not is yours. It's yours to take, re-arrange and re-use. You can do whatever you like with it. Asking for permission is like asking to keep a rock someone just threw at your head. You owe the companies nothing. Less than nothing, you especially don't owe them any courtesy. They owe you. They have re-arranged the world to put themselves in front of you. They never asked for your permission, don't even start asking for theirs.

dismalaf 2y ago
> using an ad blocker is the ONLY option to avoid adds. You can pay evilcorp for a subscription/premium account/whatever and they'll still try to force you to watch 10 minutes of adds for a 1 minute video. Fuck them. We own them nothing. On YouTube? No. I pay for Premium, there's no ads.
- HanClinto 2y ago
  I pay for YouTube Premium. I'm thankful that it exists. I still get sponsored segments in the middle of my videos (from the content creators themselves). I haven't (yet) installed SponsorBlock -- currently, I have no plans to, but I do fast-forward to skip those commercials in the middle of the videos. I pay for Amazon Prime, and they've started showing me preroll ads on my streaming content. I also still get sponsored product recommendations in my search list. I pay for Kagi search. Thankfully, this area is still relatively clean.

godshatter 2y ago

Accessing a web page using standard protocols with no authentication and filtering what I want to see of it on my computer is not stealing content. YT might want me to do something else, but I am not bound by their wishes.