Over the past few months, YouTube has intensified its efforts to prevent the use of ad blockers, even going as far as stopping video playback for users using them.
Now, YouTube is focusing on users who exploit a popular ‘hack’ to pay lower Premium subscription fees. YouTube Premium offers benefits such as ad-free viewing, video downloads, and background playback, costing $13.99/month in the US. However, this price varies significantly by country. Countries like the Philippines are only being charged Php159/month (approximately $2.7), which is a massive discount for those who want to get the service cheaper.
Some savvy users have been using VPNs to trick YouTube into believing they reside in these lower-cost countries, thus reducing their Premium subscription fees. However, this loophole is now being closed. Without any prior warning, YouTube began terminating accounts of users engaging in this practice.
A screenshot shared on Reddit by an affected user displayed the message: “Your YouTube Premium membership has been canceled.” Multiple users reported receiving similar notifications.
In a statement to PCMag, a YouTube representative confirmed the actions taken for subscribers who falsified their country information. And since it’s a violation of the streaming platform’s terms of service, suspected accounts will be cancelled.
To prevent future exploitation of this loophole, YouTube will now require customers to sign up using a local card tied to an address in the country specified on the account.
In the past year, other streaming giants like Netflix and Disney+ have also taken measures to ensure subscribers are paying appropriate fees. It remains to be seen whether YouTube will experience a similar increase in legitimate subscriptions or if users will opt to discontinue the service.