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New Delhi: YouTube’s long-running battle with ad blockers has entered another messy phase. This time, users of the Opera GX browser are reporting that the platform has become completely unusable when ad blocking is turned on. The issue, which surfaced on November 7, has caused frustration among many who suddenly found the video site going dark or failing to load thumbnails altogether.
The reports first started gaining traction on Reddit, where users on the YouTube subreddit began discussing the outage. Many initially thought the platform had suffered a server issue, but it quickly became clear that the problem was specific to Opera GX, and more precisely, its built-in ad blocker.
The original post described a situation where YouTube stopped working mid-session. “I was listening to music on YouTube in the background, and suddenly everything stopped working,” the user wrote. What followed was a wave of similar reports from others who said the website went blank, with all video previews disappearing.
Several users quickly noticed a pattern. One person commented, “Mine was also broken, seems to be Adblock related, as the site loads fine without it, and completely breaks with it.” Others said switching browsers, such as moving from Opera GX to Chrome, seemed to fix the issue.
One user named SH4DE_RL claimed the problem was directly linked to Opera’s integrated ad blocker. According to them, “It’s the built-in ad blocker in Opera GX that’s causing the problem and disabling it fixes the problem.”
The issue appears to have started earlier this week and continues to affect users who haven’t yet turned off the ad blocker feature. Some are also sharing temporary fixes online, such as disabling ad-blocking tools entirely while using YouTube.
This isn’t the first time YouTube has targeted ad-blocking users. Earlier this year, several reports claimed that YouTube deliberately “slowed down” playback for users running ad-block extensions. The site reportedly delayed video loading times and redirected some users to a Google Support page suggesting that they remove browser extensions.
The company has also experimented with more direct tactics, including blocking all video playback until users either disabled their ad blocker or subscribed to YouTube Premium. These moves have often sparked outrage among users, especially in markets where internet ads are heavy and subscriptions are seen as optional.
YouTube hasn’t commented on the new Opera GX issue, but the platform’s tightening stance against ad blockers is becoming increasingly clear. Over the past few years, the company has rolled out multiple anti-adblock measures to safeguard ad revenue, which funds most of its free content.
YouTube’s latest troubles come amid growing frustration with its other services. The company’s YouTube TV arm, for instance, has been facing backlash over missing channels from Disney, and ESPN. According to reports, several users have even threatened to leave the service if the dispute continues.
For Opera GX users, the current issue is yet another reminder of YouTube’s tough stance on ad blockers. Until a fix is rolled out, the only reliable workaround seems to be disabling the built-in ad-blocker or switching to another browser altogether.
At this point, the feud between YouTube and ad blockers doesn’t look like it’s ending anytime soon, and users are once again caught in the middle.
