YouTube Vanced is shutting down ‘due to legal reasons’

Google has finally forced the Vanced project to shut down after legal threats.

Vanced apps were popular alternatives for Android users who want to block YouTube video and music ads without subscribing to Premium. It also has other built-in customizations that are not available in the official YouTube app.

According to its creators, the download links in the website is set to be taken down in the coming days. The Vanced app will continue to work on devices who have it installed, but it won’t receive updates anymore. It’s only a matter of time before it stops working completely once it’s outdated, which the devs say could happen in “2 years or so.”

Vanced has been discontinued. In the coming days, the download links on the website will be taken down. We know this is not something you wanted to hear but it's something we need to do. Thank you all for supporting us over the years.

— Vanced Official (@YTVanced) March 13, 2022

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A cease and desist letter was sent to the Vanced owners and developers which forced them to “remove all references to YouTube, change the logo, and remove all links related to YouTube products.” It is already expected to come at some point, considering Google took down two popular music bots in Discord last year.

In the Philippines, YouTube Premium costs Php159/month for a single account and Php239/month for a family (5 accounts) subscription.