YouTube is testing serving ads directly embedded into video streams – the latest move in its war on ad-blockers.
Why it matters. The “server-side ad injection” approach bakes ads into the core video file itself, making them indistinguishable from content for client software and extensions that try to filter out advertising.
Why we care. By embedding ads directly into video streams, this approach will have an advertiser’s ads mirror the look of the content, effectively bypassing ad-blockers and enhancing the visibility and effectiveness of ad campaigns.
The details. SponsorBlock, a crowdsourced extension to skip sponsored segments, said on X YouTube is “experimenting with server-side ad injection.”
This offsets all timestamps submitted to SponsorBlock, as ads become embedded into the actual video stream.
To prevent bad data, SponsorBlock is temporarily rejecting submissions from users encountering the embedded ads.
The big picture. YouTube’s latest technical maneuver is part of its broader crackdown on ad-blocking over the past year.
It first targeted browser ad-blockers, then third-party YouTube apps popular on mobile.
The goal is to protect YouTube’s key revenue stream from advertising.
What they’re saying. “Users are encouraged to subscribe to YouTube Premium,” Google suggests, offering an ad-free paid tier.
Between the lines. Google is unlikely to detail how the server-side ad embedding works, but it requires changes to YouTube’s core video delivery infrastructure.
What’s next. The embedded ad test is still limited but likely to expand as YouTube aims to make ad-blocking tools ineffective.
I just won't watch youtube videos anymore if I can't block their ads. Then my life will be truly Google free. I resent even using them to watch youtube videos. DuckDuckGo finds everything for me, I don't even use Google search anymore.
Quite frankly, I hate their fucking guts now.
P.S. This is my last cell phone too, I just hate what Android has become, they've dumbed it down and their policies have dumbed down what apps can do (and there's no way I'll be getting Apple). I turned it on for the first time in months when I had to go out of town, but otherwise I have no use for it. Charge it up, turn it on, every app on it needs updating, it removes permissions from all my apps because I don't use it often, it's just fucking rubbish to me every time I turn the peevish thing on. I don't even bring it when I leave the house most of the time. I could count the times on one hand that I've ever used it as a "phone", too. The last person I wanted to have my number is now dead, too.
Bitter? You bet. Google can spend some quality time tonguing my anus.
