TECHWEEK
Deliberately slowing down performance and blocking videos from displaying when an ad blocker is installed – YouTube’s fight against advertising has gone too far in recent months. Users were extremely dissatisfied with such drastic decisions of the platform, which also turned out to be difficult to bypass: many had to change their browser or completely abandon the ad blocker in order to continue watching YouTube in peace. Now a developer under the nickname hackhive-io has come up with a really smart and completely legal way to skip ads on YouTube, without requiring the use of various utilities to block them.
The Ad Speedup project (compatible with Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge browsers) does exactly what the name implies. Instead of blocking YouTube ads entirely, the extension simply speeds them up by 16 times, minimizing playback interruptions. Ad Speedup automatically recognizes pop-up ads within videos and turns, for example, a 30-second integration into a light pause no longer than 1-2 seconds. The sound in advertising is also automatically muted and does not affect the video itself.
The free Ad Speedup extension legally bypasses YouTube bans. Advertising flies by unnoticed – everything is automated
Ad Speedup works very simply. The processes are automated in the background and do not use any dubious methods that YouTube management could consider to be violations of the video hosting user agreement, as is the case with blockers. The extension accelerates advertising using the browser’s built-in video player, which in turn is directly linked to the video controls offered by the service. In countries with a YouTube Premium subscription, you will not have to purchase it.
Ad Speedup is available for installation from the Chrome Web Store . It is indicated that the extension does not collect or use personal data. In the next update, hackhive-io promises to implement the main convenience – automatic pressing of the “Skip” button. The description also contains a warning that the extension’s functions “are subject to change” – this will depend on updates and the video hosting policy. According to the developer, Ad Speedup will be an excellent “backup option” if you have to completely remove and say goodbye to blockers.
