This is information from my boycott server and provided by someone else. Use this if you want help going through the boycott better than before
I've been seeing a lot of misunderstanding going around about how YouTube works, and what will work best in regards to the boycott, so l wanted to put it all together in one place for everyone to read. This is just my understanding of how this all works, so as always with anything, take it with a grain of salt!
• Continuing to watch YouTube with an ad blocker still gives YouTube traffic. Many people have been using ad blockers for years, and it is something YouTube is already very familiar with. Even if it does cost them ad revenue, they will point to ad blockers as the issue rather than listening to concerns about their age verification system.
Watching YouTube with an ad blocker will not work for the purposes of this boycott.
• Using third-party apps such as FreeTube or NewPipe does still give YouTube traffic and counts towards views and watch time. There are extra privacy features with these apps, which is great, but on Youtube's end it is functionally the same as using ad blockers.
* Watch time is a huge factor (to my knowledge, one of if not the biggest factors) in how much profit YouTube makes. The longer you stay on their website
- namely, the longer you're actively watching videos - the more money they earn through ad revenue. So, for example, a single user watching a 30 minute video is much more valuable to them than a single user watching a 5 minute video.
Video watch time matters much more than video views, or the amount of traffic they get from users sitting on the YouTube homepage.
Something to remember is that it is okay not to be perfect. Having an all-or-nothing mindset will just lead to burnout, and giving up on the boycott too early. So, in the spirit of progress rather than perfection, here are some steps to take:
1 - Cancel YouTube Premium.
If you currently have a YouTube Premium subscription, cancel it, and tell them why.
When you cancel, leave them a message explaining that you are canceling because of the new age verification policy, and state firmly that you will not be paying for or using YouTube until this policy is revoked. Even if you plan to use YouTube again in the future, tell them that you won't.
2 - Download videos rather than streaming them.
Fully boycotting YouTube is the single best thing you can do right now, but if that isn't possible, here is what you can do instead to avoid giving YouTube more watch time.
But if you can’t download them, just watching with front ends still work. Just don’t do it too often. ( just like how you shouldn’t download too much, just when needed)
Search the specific channels that you want - or, if you must, browse your subscription tab and homepage - until you find the video you want to watch. Rather than opening it, right-click the video and hit 'copy link' or whatever similar option your browser has.
Then, paste the link into your YouTube Downloader of choice, and enjoy.
To my knowledge, watching videos this way will not give YouTube videos views or watch time. It will still give the website traffic overall, but is still a solid alternative to just streaming the videos.
3 - If you can, stop using YouTube altogether.
Refusing to give their website any traffic at all is the single best thing you can do to protest right now. If you cannot stop using it entirely due to work, or if there are a few specific things you want to keep up with, use downloaders as mentioned above, but keep YouTube usage to an absolute minimum as much as possible.
4- try to get YouTubers to contact youtube
YouTubers are our few ways to get direct contact with YouTube.
If we can get YouTubers to start contacting youtube about reversing this ID policy, than we can increase our chances to reverting the policy
Share info about the age verification system and the boycott to as many others as you can.
Many people might not be aware of what's going on, or how to meaningfully protest it.
Be prepared for pushback.
It's completely normal to feel nervous when speaking up about something like this. There will very likely be some people who get irritated or disagree, and that is okay.
Remember - don't attack anyone who disagrees with the protest. Don't try to guilt-trip anyone. Shame is a demotivator - making someone feel bad will not do anything to convince them. Just present your concerns about the age verification system, offer resources to learn more about it, and talk about the boycott.
When spreading the word about the boycott, here are a few things to focus on:
* The A.l. age estimation system is incredibly inconsistent and will end up incorrectly locking many adult users out of the full features of their accounts.
* Any system that requires users to upload a picture of their government I.D. is extremely dangerous. This puts all users at massive risk of their personal data being exposed on a level that has never been seen before.
* The age verification system does not protect children. This system does nothing to address the mountains of harmful content already found on the YouTube Kids app, and it will not effectively prevent kids from accessing that harmful content.
* LGBT+ content will get incorrectly marked as 'adult' and will be censored as a result of this system. Teens and kids will be prevented from accessing LGBT content, even if it is 100% appropriate.
* • Youtube's age verification system is not about safety, it is about data collection and censorship. It is extremely likely that the real motive behind this change is to allow YouTube as a company to collect even more personal data from its users, allowing them to serve even more targeted ads and make more profit, while also effectively censoring content they do not like.
* Lastly - protesting the changes made to You Tube is going to be difficult.
* It is going to be frustrating, it is going to be exhausting, and it is also going to be boring.
* Going without a major source of
* entertainment that, for many of us, has been part of our daily routine for years, is a very hard thing to do.
* but we can make it through this!
jbbartram-illu
pixelskylines
jacobvanloon
turnnoffyourmind
blakekathryn
