So I have a conspiracy theory around that. Android used to put the volume slider at the top of the screen. At some point they moved it to the right side, and now blocks the skip button on YouTube. I won’t doubt this was done on purpose, so if you lower the volume for an ad, you will be forced to watch more of it.

Reminds me of a guy I knew who kept getting letters for a $10 parking fine he got while at university. He waited until they spent more in postage than the fine before paying it.