In 2024, YouTube is the go-to destination for many people not just for fun videos but also for information. But if there’s one thing that none of us like while watching YouTube videos – it’s ads. And to get rid of these ads, people sometimes resort to all sorts of measures – even if it means changing their location using a VPN and purchasing a premium subscription to the streaming service. And now, YouTube is reportedly cracking down on such users and banning their subscriptions. Didn’t you get the point? Let’s find out in detail.

For those who don’t know, YouTube Premium is a subscription service that offers users ad-free content and additional features. In India, a three-month plan costs Rs 399, a one-month plan costs Rs 129, and a twelve-month plan costs Rs 1,290. However, in other countries, the amount varies. In some countries, this subscription is cheaper while in other countries, it is expensive. Now, a common practice done by users was to change their location to a country where YouTube Premium was cheaper by using a VPN (Virtual Private Network).

For example, while YouTube Premium costs USD 13.99 per month in the US for ad-free videos, YouTube Music, and offline downloads. Meanwhile, the subscription in Argentina costs just USD 1.05 per month (869 ARS). So, a user living in the US can use a VPN to purchase a YouTube Premium subscription at the price offered in Argentina. However, YouTube is now targeting subscribers who use this tactic without actually residing in those countries.

Many users on Reddit have reported that their subscriptions were automatically cancelled. Users who spoke to the YouTube team have also reported that their subscriptions were cancelled because they “moved” to another location.

“Confirmed this is a crackdown on cheap VPN subscriptions. Just spoke to customer service who said that because I’ve “moved” to a different location than where I signed up (Ukraine but UK based), the service has been cancelled unless I sign up with a UK card and address. From £2.30 a month to £12.99. Ouch,” one user wrote.

“My account got cancelled too. I guess they are cracking down on cheap VPN subscriptions,” another user said.

In a statement to The Verge, YouTube spokesperson Paul Pennington confirmed that the company “has systems in place” to verify its users’ locations. “In cases where the signup country does not match the country where the user is accessing YouTube, we are asking members to update their billing information to their current country of residence,” Pennington said. However, Pennington did not clarify whether YouTube has begun automatically canceling subscriptions that use changed locations.