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Introduction:
Browser Extension Lets You Block YouTube’s Sponsored Ads: Many users turn to ad blockers to avoid the intrusive ads that Google injects into YouTube videos. Google, of course, isn’t fond of this practice, and it’s been emphasized that ads are essential to the YouTube experience. But there’s a different kind of ad that typical ad blockers won’t eliminate—sponsored ads or product placements that content creators insert into their videos. It’s a way for creators to monetize their channels.
Browser Extension Lets You Block YouTube’s Sponsored Ads
Google recently revealed that YouTubers can timestamp these product ads in their videos to boost sales. Sponsored ads like these are different from regular Google-delivered ads, as they’re often promoting products or services that align with the content. While these can be beneficial, there is a way to block them too, thanks to a browser extension.
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Browser Extension Lets You Block YouTube’s Sponsored Ads: SponsorBlock
The SponsorBlock extension, found by Lifehacker, is compatible with various browsers, including Chrome, Safari, Mozilla, Edge, and other Chrome-based versions. This open-source extension uses crowdsourced information from YouTube viewers who submit “skip segments” to the platform. Skip segments are parts of a video where a creator advertises a product or service. SponsorBlock has seen over 15 million skip segments submitted by users.
According to the SponsorBlock website, “There are currently 13,033,165 users who have submitted 15,054,832 skip segments, which have saved a total of 1885 years and 16.23 days of people’s lives.” After enabling the extension in your browser, sponsored content will be marked in green. The video will automatically skip over these product placement segments, or you can manually jump past them. The extension employs a “privacy-preserving query system” for automatic skipping.
SponsorBlock’s settings allow you to disable automatic skipping or add intros and outros to the list of segments you’d like to avoid. You can also contribute to the list of skip segments for videos where the extension hasn’t been implemented yet. It’s important to note that the sponsored ads must be identified by regular YouTube users before the extension can block them.
SponsorBlock maintains a leaderboard to recognize the most active contributors. Aside from browsers, SponsorBlock may also work with third-party apps on Android, iPhone, and Android TV. Ultimately, the choice of whether to use this extension to skip sponsored ads is yours to make, keeping in mind that creators rely on advertising to earn a living. If you decide to use browser extensions, always make sure to download them from the official stores.
