News written by Petteri Pyyny (November, 2024)

Owned by the world's largest advertising company, Google, YouTube started a war against ad blockers last year, with the aim of pushing users to subscribe to the paid, ad-free YouTube Premium service.

This strategy seems to have worked, as YouTube Premium subscriptions have seen impressive growth. But, of course, Google's revenue engine demands more, so the company recently increased YouTube Premium prices significantly in most of its operating countries.

Now, however, it seems Google may be compromising on YouTube Premium's core selling point.

On social media, there has been an increasing number of comments from disgruntled YouTube Premium subscribers reporting that ads are being shown to them as well.

One user decided to reach out to YouTube support for an explanation, and indeed received a response to their question. So, why is Google showing ads to "ad-free" YouTube Premium subscribers?

Google announced today a significant shift in its update strategy for the Android operating system, moving away from the current annual update cycle. In the future, major Android updates are set to roll out more frequently.

For years, Google has released a major Android update each fall, coinciding roughly with the launch of its new Pixel smartphone models. The latest update, Android 15 launched in September 2024 and began rolling out to select devices in October.

However, according to Google's recent statement, the upcoming Android 16 is scheduled for release in the second quarter of 2025. This means users can expect it by the end of June 2025--if not sooner.

The reason for this change is rooted in Android's underlying SDK release schedule, which traditionally only updated alongside major Android versions. These SDK updates bring new system-level features for app developers, and Google now aims to provide these enhancements at a faster pace.

Potential Issues on the Horizon