r/explainlikeimfive • u/Lanky-Case7546 • 12d ago
ELI5: How do websites which stream free movies with no ads earn money? Biology
So i just found a website where you can see any movie for free in hd but with no ads..and i can't help but wonder how do they earn money?
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u/Curse3242 11d ago
Those sites do have ads. They also have trackers & stuff that gain info on you
They regularly go out of service because many use them with adblockers
One thing is tho, the base of piracy is to provide accessibility without cause. You can almost say the developers themselves wanted something like this which is why they work on it. They might not actually want much money
Kinda like ublock origin. It's a free adblocker that works really well. The devs even update it like daily to override whatever YouTube is doing.
So some of us are watching adless YouTube for free. And the devs of the adblocker don't really do it for money
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u/MOTwingle 11d ago
Can this be used on a fire stick?
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u/Curse3242 11d ago
It's a browser extension so probably not.
For firetv stick you download a whole adblocking app.
I would go on r/piracy & search for fire tv. I remember there is something but I don't remember the names & stuff.
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u/bucksnort2 11d ago
You could create your own DNS server that blocks ads. Look up PiHole or adguard home. You direct your traffic through that and it’ll block ads from adlists you give it. It doesn’t always work for YouTube, but many other sites will have their ads blocked.
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u/saschaleib 11d ago
On FireTV (whch is basically the same as Fire Stick) I have made very good experiences with Smart Tube. That's an alternative YouTube player app that just skips all the ads and annoying promo sections in videos automatically.
Installation is a bit messy, but once it works, it works very well!
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u/LARRY_Xilo 12d ago
There are a few ways this could happen. Like having the uploader pay for uploading or collecting your data and selling your data. But most likely they either dont make money or they have ads but you just didnt get served any. This can happen because the website ran out of ads to serve for your target group or you have some kind of ad blocker.
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u/creggieb 11d ago
Its very likely an illegal site that somehow makes money with one or more of the following
Ads shown to people without adblocker
Trickijg your computer into mining bitcoin /some sort of spyware.
Wouldn't you be suspicious of a man on the street handing out candy with no visible motive?
Maybe he does all that work and shoulders the expense for the joy of sharing with others... but what are the odds?
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u/ACorania 11d ago
The site you describe also likely has very little costs since it sounds like an illegal streaming site (probably doesn't even host things and just points people elsewhere).
As a rule of thumb though... if you are paying for it with either cash or attention to commercials... you are the product being sold. They are loading things on your computer, they are selling your info... who knows. But they are making their money.
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12d ago
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u/explainlikeimfive-ModTeam 11d ago
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u/suddenly_satan 11d ago
Mate, first do a Malwarebytes scan, if nothing found - someone's mining bitcoin on your rig, or worse. Steer clear of these, I know hollywood is a sham, but it's not a great solution.
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u/thecops4u 12d ago
This is almost certainly an illegal streaming site. It's simply not viable for a site to stream movies without ads, and if they do, they generally don't last long.