YouTube Background Music and Podcasts Stop Working When Browser is Minimized

In recent days, mobile users have been widely reporting that YouTube has stopped playing videos in the background when using third-party browsers. The issue affects browsers such as Samsung Internet, Brave, Vivaldi, and Microsoft Edge.

Previously, this feature allowed users to listen to a video's audio track when the browser was minimized or the screen was locked, serving as a popular workaround for free users. Now, performing these actions stops playback. On some devices, a "MediaOngoingActivity" notification briefly appears before the playback controls disappear.

Reports of the problem emerged about a week ago and have since spread to many users. Discussions are ongoing on the Samsung forum, Reddit communities, and the Brave browser's GitHub tracker. Attempts at standard fixes, such as clearing the cache or checking Picture-in-Picture and javascript settings, have yielded no results.

The identical symptoms across multiple browsers simultaneously point to changes initiated from YouTube's side. Many interpret this as a deliberate move to eliminate a loophole that allowed free access to a function that is a key selling point of the paid YouTube Premium subscription.

Google has not yet issued an official statement on the matter. Consequently, users unwilling to purchase a Premium subscription are left with the only option of playing videos in the browser's active window. Some note that in isolated cases, such as after updating Brave, the functionality might have temporarily returned, but the widespread issue persists.