YouTube instructs people to stop lying about living in countries where such Premium subscriptions are significantly cheaper. It is important to take note if you’ve been using a VPN to get your YouTube Premium at a lower price.
The VPN Trick
Here’s what’s been happening: In some countries, YouTube Premium can really be quite expensive. For example, it is about €13 or $14 monthly in Germany and the US. However, in other countries, including Ghana, Turkey, Pakistan, and Ukraine, it may be as low as 2 euros per month. That’s a huge difference!
Due to this, there are people who have devised ways of tricking the systems into thinking they are in these cheap countries through VPNs. VPN, or Virtual Private Network, is a technology that can relocate one’s computer in a different geographic location. It is like wearing a mask and telling everyone, “Greetings, I am in Turkey” when in fact the person is actually in his/her room in the United States. Pretty sneaky, right?
Google’s Response
But now, Google, who owns YouTube, has caught on to this trick. They have begun sending messages to the accounts they think are pretending to be in a different geographical location. The message is clear: ”You understand we know that you are not in that cheaper country, so use your true location to sign up again or else forfeit your Premium status.”
Google acknowledged this new policy to TechCruch, a technology website, stating that they already have ways of determining users actual location. Which means it appears that the days of getting a YouTube Premium subscription at a low price with the assistance of a VPN are coming to an end.
What can happen if one chooses to ignore the warning?
The good news is that Google aren’t going to block accounts … at least not for now. They are just directing people to re-subscribe using their actual location. If you do not heed the warning, you are deprived of enjoying additional features offered by YouTube Premium, namely, the absence of ads, background play, and offline mode.
Tough action against ad blockers too
And that’s not all. YouTube to is suing against ad blockers. An ad blocker is a software that prevents advertisements from being aired before, during, or after videos. But YouTube needs those ads to get through because ads are one of the main sources of their income.
To address this, YouTube is now beginning to place the ads right in the video streams on the server level. This implies even with an ad blocker it will be possible to see those ads.
Why This Matters
You might wonder, why does YouTube care so much? No, no, no. It is all about money. YouTube Premium subscriptions and ads play a big part in the platform’s revenue. When individuals opt for VPNs to pay lower prices or to avoid ads, the platform like YouTube stands to lose such revenues.
Final Thoughts
Therefore, if you are among those who have been accessing the YouTube Premium service via a VPN to pay a lower price, now is the best time to desist. Google is determined to fight this scourge and eliminate it as much as possible. And remember, no matter it may seem as a fun, and rather innocent joke, it is always wiser to stick to the rules.
