My gripe here is, for example, YouTube premium charging to remove ads and that indeed does make the experience better - and then there are sponsorship messages for stuff I won't name <cough> nordvpn for instance. There seems to be no rules about in-video sponsorship which honestly is driving me nuts. I feel like it is impossible to get away from ads no matter what one pays at this point.
> YouTube premium charging to remove ads [...] and then there are sponsorship messages
That's the main reason I won't even consider YouTube Premium - pointless to pay for "an ad-free experience" when, instead, you get a 5 minute segment in the middle of a video shilling for [flavour of the month]VPN or Audible.
If you are playing a playlist of music videos, "standard" ads ruin your playlist. And music videos don't have sponsor interruptions.
That said, the "sponsor segment" has become a staple in the YouTube channels I follow, and it is noticeable, but most authors will helpfully place it in its own segment, where you can skip it. I never watch the sponsor messages, because why would I? Ads suck.
Well, yes. They all have to become long-term profitable, so that's how it works.
You can't really complain, though. It was nice to have better-quality content for cheap while it lasted, so we can just appreciate that. But now you actually have to pay what things are worth. I don't see the problem.
It doesn't help that the original appeal of Netflix (having everything at your fingertips) was ruined by media companies starting their own streaming sites
Netflix (streaming) never gave you everything at your fingertips though. If you wanted a full film catalog you subscribed--or do subscribe though the back catalog has degraded--to the DVD by mail service.
We shouldn't allow vertical integration of streaming services and production. Just like we (in the US, at least) didn't allow vertical integration of movie theaters and movie production for decades (ended only very recently). It'd solve a lot of the problems in this space.