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Google is taking a tough stance against YouTube viewers who best VPN deals to subscribe to YouTube Premium cheaply in other countries. The Californian company has confirmed that it tracks subscribers whose current location does not match the registration country listed in the system.
If an anomaly is discovered, Google prompts users to update their billing information.
Angry YouTube Premium subscribers flooded Reddit to complain about the cancellation of their subscriptions after Google detected VPN activity to purchase a cheap subscription outside their region.
“It looks like they have cracked down on people using VPNs to log in,” said one user on the social news website groaned. “My YouTube Premium subscription via Ukraine was cancelled. I tried to renew it with the same Revolut debit card I always use and now I’m asked for a card with an address in the subscription country.”
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Another added: “The same thing happened here. The homepage told me that my previous country was incorrect (Turkey).”
VPNs are commonly used to protect your privacy by encrypting your online activity and masking your IP address – keeping your location hidden from your broadband provider, advertisers, and hackers. Once reserved for corporate users, VPNs are now a common security measure for millions of people around the world.
These nifty apps also allow you to manually change your IP address to spoof your current location. This has applications for online games, Call of Duty Warzone VPNs remain incredibly popular, but also mean you can unlock cheaper subscriptions and pricing that are only available in other countries.
Google – like most companies – changes its subscription prices depending on the region. Users used a VPN to change their IP address to a location where YouTube Premium was cheaper.
YouTube Premium costs 99 UAH in Ukraine, which is about £1.94. The same subscription – with all the same benefits – costs £12.99 in the UK.
In a statement to TechCrunchA Google spokesperson confirmed the crackdown: “To provide the most accurate plans and offers available, we have systems in place to determine the country of origin of our users. In cases where the sign-in country does not match the country in which the user accesses YouTube, we ask members to update their billing information to their current country of residence.”
The spokesperson declined to comment on whether the company had canceled subscriptions purchased through VPNs.
A Google customer service representative confirmed to PC Mag that YouTube “has initiated the termination of Premium membership for accounts found to have provided incorrect country information during sign-up.”
The support agent said the wave of cancellations began “recently,” but did not confirm the exact date the action began. The customer service agent added: “Due to the violation of YouTube’s paid terms of service, these users will receive an email and in-app notification informing them of the cancellation.”
YouTube Premium includes all the benefits of YouTube Music for £10.99 a month, plus ad-free viewing of all YouTube videos, the ability to download videos to watch offline, and more.
YouTube
Last summer, Google increased prices for YouTube Premium subscribers in the UK, increasing the monthly subscription from £11.99 to £12.99 for all new customers. Earlier this year, the same price increase also applied to existing subscribers.
The family plan, which allows up to six people to listen on their own devices, has increased from £17.99 to £19.99 in the UK, a price increase of 11%.
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YouTube Premium includes several benefits, including ad-free videos on YouTube.
It also lets you download videos to watch offline – and lets you play videos in the background while you use other apps. The same monthly subscription also includes access to YouTube Music Premium, a rival to like Spotify, Apple MusicAnd Deezer.
In addition to offline playback and curated playlists, YouTube Music Premium also bundles music videos.