You make some interesting points, which inspire more thought. YT probably wouldn't be so shitty if users paid for it. Instead, YT is making decisions based on what ad buyers want. They sort of have to. But that isn't the case for Premium. Another similar example was the whole interface fiasco. I messaged them and told them I was canceling if they didn't leave my shit alone. They said they would and I never dealt with it. Those who pay have the say. It's just the reality.

And I agree Nostr did toss it back to the users. That's not bad. I think it's great. But that also means there is no real alternative to YT and likely won't be for many years. At least not on Nostr.