YouTube rolls out fresh update while Pakistan still waits for the site to be unblocked

YouTube has tweaked their interface a bit – the site has given their video player a sleek makeover that scores high in the aesthetics department. The site now has a transparent seek bar which disappears after a few seconds of inactivity, like on your mobile. The bar remains thin until you hover your mouse over it, which makes it a little thicker and easier to use. The settings option has also been updated with a mobile-like feel.

Only last month YouTube released a newer version of their Android app with a strong focus towards user subscriptions. They also announced that support for 3D Virtual Reality videos will be rolled out soon enough. Also, YouTube finally split from Google+ last month. Users will no longer need G+ profiles to make or subscribe to channels or to leave comments even.

See Also: Google is finally bidding farewell to Google+

Their newest update was first released to a limited number of people back in April but is now visible to a global audience – except for the Pakistanis, of course. YouTube has been blocked in Pakistan for what seems like an eternity. The video-sharing website has been blocked in the country since September 2012 after it hosted “Innocence of Muslims”, a movie that sparked furious protests around the world. The Supreme Court ruled at the time that the site should be banned until a way was found to block all blasphemous content. In February this year, officials announced that the site will remain blocked for an indefinite time period. However, there have reports of the site being temporary unblocked and several people have been able to use it without any proxy.

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Nevertheless, several proxies and alternate websites (Playit.pk, Tune.pk) have popped up as a solution to the unavailability of YouTube here. This only proves that no matter how hard you try to suppress something, it will eventually sprout up and there’s nothing you can do about it.

YouTube was blocked due to some blasphemous content shared on it. Profanity is abundant on the Internet, but that does not mean that you would stop using the Internet altogether. You avoid such content and focus on your actual goals. YouTube has a vast collection of lectures, tutorials and how-tos for, not only, students but for people belonging to almost any walk of life. People run their own channels on the site and earn huge amounts of money from it. All these plus points have been put on hold ever since the site was blocked. We hope that in time the PTA realizes that blocking YouTube is just depriving our people of opportunity.

Has the ban on YouTube affected you in any way? Let us know in the comments below.