Pakistan cricketers and YouTubers hurting 'financially' after India block their channels: 'Ban is going to hit hard'

Several Pakistani ex-cricketers and YouTubers have expressed concern over loss of income following the Indian government’s decision to ban several YouTube accounts belonging to notable personalities on the other side of the border in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack. Among those whose accounts have been blocked in India following the deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam – which left 26 civilians dead – are legendary pacer Shoaib Akhtar and popular content creator Wasay Habib.

Both Akhtar and Habib, who provides a humorous take on the latest cricketing events with fellow analyst Iffi Raza, enjoy a huge fan following in India and their diminished online presence comes as a huge blow to their income from the video-sharing platform owned by Google.

“A large portion of our viewership comes from India. One can’t deny the fact that most of these channels rely heavily on their Indian fan base. This ban is going to hit many YouTubers hard, both financially and in terms of visibility,” a former Pakistan cricketer told IANS.

‘Losing Indian viewership means a steep drop in ad revenue’

While several former Pakistani cricketers including Rameez Raja have made a career in broadcasting as a commentator, or by appearing on news channels as an expert, pace legend Akhtar was among the first to develop a massive following on YouTube, his account skyrocketing in popularity around the 2019 ICC World Cup.

Akhtar further boosted his popularity in India by focused primarily on the Men in Blue’s accomplishments on the field while heaping praise on top stars such as Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Raja as well as other former cricketers such as Inzamam-ul-Haq would join the trend not long after and reap the rewards of India-centric commentary on social media.

“For creators who depend on YouTube’s monetisation, losing Indian viewership means a steep drop in ad revenue,” the news agency quoted a social media strategist in Lahore as saying.

Besides Akhtar and Habib, the Government of India also blocked YouTube channels belonging to leading news channels such as Geo News, Samaa TV in a move they claimed was aimed at curbing the spread of misinformation and protecting national security. A total of 16 YouTube channels have been blocked following an order from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

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More recently, Instagram, the photo and video-sharing platform owned by social media giant Meta (formerly Facebook), blocked accounts belonging to current Pakistan cricket stars Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi after receiving a “legal request”.

The accounts of popular actors and other celebrities such as Hania Aamir, Mahira Khan and Ali Zafar have also been blocked in India following the deadly attack, which has led to a complete breakdown in diplomatic ties between the two nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours.