Submitted 5 months ago by sabreW4K3@lazysoci.al to technology@beehaw.org
https://fosstodon.org/@sponsorblock/112603139898164385
cross-posted from: lazysoci.al/post/14579120
YouTube is currently experimenting with server-side ad injection. This means that the ad is being added directly into the video stream.
This breaks sponsorblock since now all timestamps are offset by the ad times.
For now, I set up the server to detect when someone is submitting from a browser with this happening and rejecting the submission to prevent the database from getting filled with incorrect submissions.
In that thread, the sponsorblock official account posted:
the ui needs to change to include ad links, so the data for when ads happen should still be retrievable somewhere in the page. Then just a bit of math
So hopefully, there will still be a method for sponsorblock to continue work.
If that happens then I swear to fucking God I’m done with YouTube forever.
I mean, I think that in the long run, trying to fight an arms race against Google on ad visibility is a losing proposition, but this isn’t really all that hard to defeat from a technical standpoint. You just identify ads relative to timestamp offsets from a given matched frame. Use some kind of fuzzy hash to identify that frame, and use an identifier where it’s computationally-cheap to reject most frames.
So, like, “ad ranging from frame hash 18037gb5028de882 + .53 sec lasting 30 seconds”.
I dunno how Sponsorblock works – I don’t use it – but I assume that it has some human manually identify a time. In picking a frame to use for the offset, the software needs to hash each frame in the video. Then when someone flags a frame as starting an ad sequence, search backwards from the identified time, and pick a frame to match against, look for a frame with a unique hash in the video.
Right now it’s entirely timestamp-based. That means it can interface and work on simple playback terms. On time, jump, jump to time, etc. Having to get frame data and hash it, and make playback depend on it adds a lot of technical complexity.
If ad length varies you don’t even know how far to jump ahead. And if you haven’t prebuffered the data until after the ad, you can’t find out from a hashed after-frame-hash-value either.
I bet the majority will continue watching YouTube and accept the ads. But I do wonder if yt-dlp and other downloaders will still cut into their ad revenue. All those injected add won’t ever be clicked on, or the clients will change to automatically click them thus rendering the ads meaningless.
I’ve checked the Github when I read this to see whether they’re having trouble as well, and currently it appears that YouTube will block your IP if you use it too much
It’ll probably be done with an overlay/prompt for the user to click on (Unless they’re paying for exposure and not direct traffic idk). But such a popup would provide a hook for a patched version of yt-dl to detect the ad and trim it out of the final video.
Also, shouldn’t a forum signature at all should be enough to screw with AI scrapers? No need to link to anything specific
Damn, also would break ublock I assume?
I am expecting that is exactly the point. I don’t think they’ll win, tho. We’ll find a way around it.
uBlock might be out at some point, but modified APKs will probably live forever.
Pirates, aaargh… always finds a way.
uBO is all kinds of broken for multiple people right now. It's a constant cat and mouse game, but YouTube seems to be winning for now.
uBlock Origin works fine for me on youtube. Just make sure you keep it updated and don’t run multiple blockers.
This could honestly be really good for Nebula.
Is Nebula federated?
Nah, it’s a subscription service, but it’s got a few notable YouTubers and they tend to drop extra content there. PhilosophyTube is on there, 12Tone, a bunch of people. As a platform it’s a lot less bullshit, but it’s also obviously less content.
Though now I realize you actually have to get referred by one of the other members in order to start posting, so I’m not really sure they stand to benefit that much. It kind of explains why the content has been lacking. It certainly won’t ever have the diversity of content that YouTube has with that approach.
Honestly learning that it’s more of a market stall than a garden makes me less enthusiastic. It’s there to curate what’s already on YouTube without YouTube’s limitations, not to create a better alternative that’s actually sustainable. It seems like its model still relies on YouTube as the means for people to grow their channel and production value, which they then just find a way to profit on.
I live in a region that has decently low YouTube premium pricing. If it’s ads or nothing, I may get a subscription. But I haven’t checked pricing in a while, so maybe it’s gone up too much.
I live in a region that has decently low YouTube premium pricing. If it’s ads or nothing, I may get a subscription. But I haven’t checked pricing in a while, so maybe it’s gone up too much.
I wonder how would that affect yt-dlp
algorithmae@lemmy.sdf.org 5 months ago
Literally just make ads less obnoxious, and/or make YouTube premium not stupidly expensive. That’s all you fuckin have to do, YouTube, and you can cut a huge portion of the car and mouse game.
runner_g@lemmy.blahaj.zone 5 months ago
Absolutely. If premium was 7 bucks a month I would subscribe today, but 14 a month is insane!
bownage@beehaw.org 5 months ago
There was a premium lite for 7 bucks but they discontinued it in October as part of their ‘fuck all yall’ campaign
TehPers@beehaw.org 5 months ago
All they’d have to do for me to buy premium is make a plan without YT music that costs less. It’s not that hard. I will never use YT music, and that has nothing to do with the quality of the service or whatever - I’m not interested in music streaming services at all.
umbrella@lemmy.ml 5 months ago
according to their bean counters its probably cheaper for them.to do the cat and mouse game. they wouldnt be doing it like this otherwise.
algorithmae@lemmy.sdf.org 5 months ago
As much as I don’t want to believe it, it must be true. I guess development is cheap enough when you have foreign countries doing it for you