Until today, YouTube is still experimenting with ways to force you to watch advertisements while streaming. We have reported the many various ways before but perhaps this is one of the eye-rolling methods, which is hiding the Skip button.
For now, this is just a test by YouTube so nothing is official. Still, it's wild to see YouTube conducting this online and several users have been affected. A Redditor shared a screenshot of a black rectangle overlay hiding the skip button a few days ago, the same goes for other media outlets using YouTube noticing only a yellow line moving at variable speeds.
A skip button would occassionally appear after five seconds, particularly if the advertisement is long. If not, then it would appear after the yellow line reaches the end. This is happening on both desktop and mobile at the moment, so YouTube is trying to see which method is the "best" way for users to watch the ads.
Subscribing to YouTube Premium is the only legal way to avoid unskippable ads online but recently, the membership prices have increased this month in Malaysia. Below are the before and after prices for each plan:
| YouTube Premium plans | Before (RM) | After (RM) |
|---|---|---|
| Student | 10.90 per month | 12.90 per month |
| Individual | 17.90 per month | 20.90 per month |
| Family | 33.90 per month | 40.90 per month |
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