Recent reports indicate that YouTube is causing a five-second delay for viewers using non-Chrome browsers like Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft Edge, even without extensions or ad-blockers (via Android Authority).
Concerns arise as some users experience this delay, while others don’t, hinting at a potential browser or account-related issue.
Redditor vk6_ shared a video revealing a consistent five-second lag when loading YouTube videos on Firefox. Interestingly, altering the user agent to Chrome eliminates this delay.
Similar complaints from other Redditors validate the claim about sluggish YouTube video loading on Firefox and Edge.
According to vk6_, the delay isn’t a Firefox bug. Instead, YouTube’s desktop JavaScript code appears to deliberately introduce the delay.
Redditors identified the specific section of code responsible for this artificial delay.
The following video shows what the YouTube load times currently look like under Firefox.
In response, YouTube attributed the issue to ad blockers, urging users to enable ads or opt for YouTube Premium for an ad-free experience.
The company has provided the following statement on the matter:
To support a diverse ecosystem of creators globally and allow billions to access their favorite content on YouTube, we’ve launched an effort to urge viewers with ad blockers enabled to allow ads on YouTube or try YouTube Premium for an ad free experience. Users who have ad blockers installed may experience suboptimal viewing, regardless of the browser they are using.
So basically, YouTube is advising users affected by the delay to consider allowing ads on YouTube or pay up for YouTube Premium. What do you guys think?
