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Decentralised YouTube alternative Odysee no longer serving ads (odysee.com)

submitted 3 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

319 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Odysee, a decentralised YouTube alternative focused on free speech, is officially ending the serving of ads on the platform, starting today. The post:

"Dear friends of Odysee, Starting today, we're removing all ads. We don't need ads to make money as a platform and we are confident in the development of our own new monetisation programs that will help creators earn a living and at the same time keep Odysee alive. Ultimately, sacrificing the overall user experience to make a few bucks isn't worth it to us and nor is it even sustainable for a platform that wishes to make something truly open and creatively free.

As we take this decision, one thing is certain to us, media platforms (even ones that market themselves as 'free-speech') typically devolve into advertising companies and end up becoming beholden to their paymasters. It's been that way for centuries and is never going to change.

As we see YouTube become more aggressive with their ad deployment and 'Free Speech' platforms try to build their own ad businesses it's apparent to us that we're building a model for Odysee that will keep it sustainable not only financially, but in its ability to provide an incorruptible user experience.

Our approach may be considered niche or unconventional, that's fine by us. Odysee will be used by the world on terms that are agreeable to its users, and we know our users don't like ads.

Best, Founder & Creator, Chief Executive Officer. Julian Chandra"

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[–] [email protected] -4 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (4 children)

As if Youtube didn't promote conspiracy theories and almost Nazi rhetorics that serve the country it's based in. They do, which they don't call as such. Everything else they'll call conspiracy theories and propaganda.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 3 months ago (1 children)

So that makes odysee's behaviour OK?

[–] [email protected] -3 points 3 months ago

Nothing. But mentioning it, don't forget to mention Youtube as well.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 months ago (3 children)

I have no idea why you're being downvoted since you're 100% correct. I watch one video about gaming and YouTube's recommendations are all alt-right anti-feminist stuff with Ben Shapiro and Jordan Peterson.

Google surely knows enough about me to know I lean far-left but the algorithm is determined to feed me that slop.

I have no idea from a technical perspective if Odysee's algorithm is independent from or worse than YouTube's, but the criticism of YouTube is completely valid.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)

They’re being downvoted because one platform being shitty doesn’t excuse another from it.

See: Tu Quoque

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago

I didn't read the argument as saying one platform's behavior excuses the other. I saw it as saying that both are bad.

It certainly doesn't come across as a defense of either platform to say they're both infested by Nazis.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago

I have watched super progressive content on Youtube but also watched conservative content as well. It's possible there are a lot of progressives who also watch content from the other side so the algorithm pushes it.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

that's why you should be logged out of Google and also delete your cookies periodically :) To reset the memory of Google

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago

The thing is that I do want to have my subscriptions and favorite channels, and as long as UBO blocks ads, I haven't fully made the switch to a different front-end.

But it still bothers me that it serves me far-right, religious, and conspiracy theory content given that I've never once engaged with any of those topics.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago

The difference between Odysee and YouTube is that YouTube doesn't claim to be a free speech platform that allows any possible statements on, and does often take down a lot of the harmful content. You only see the remainder, not the whole.

Odysee is quite small, and as such, could relatively easily moderate much more of the content on its platform, if they actually cared about doing so.

Odysee explicitly tries to allow as much speech as possible, claiming that they totally won't allow any bad content, while in reality, platforming LGBTQ+ misinformation, white nationalist rhetoric, anti-immigrant propaganda, etc.

All of those violate their Community Guidelines, by the way. But remember, it's guidelines, not actual policy as to what they remove.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Fox news seems to own YT's algorithm as far as I can tell.

Never a click from me, but 6 of the top 10 news vids every time.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago

i almost never watch news on yt, haven't gotten any.