NextDNS and Paramount+ : New Tweaks
It’s always a race between hare and tortoise: If you just won’t like to get tracked when streaming, you always have to keep pace with the streaming services’ changes – especially when using tools like Pi-hole or NextDNS. In my case, Paramount+ stopped working by the end of October.
Apart from the discussion whether Paramount+ is still a streaming service that should be supported since getting acquired by Skydance Media or not, the connection between David Ellison, son of Oracle’s MAGA-supporting Larry Ellison, shouldn’t be the primary focus here. As for me, I like the service and many shows running there – but I’d also like to watch those without getting tracked in such enormous ways Paramount+ does it for the time being.
Indeed I am quite strict with my block lists since I stopped having a Pi-hole and turned to use NextDNS instead. I have very, very few exceptions and the combination of many blocklists – including HaGeZi’s Multi PRO++list – lead to Paramount+ stopping to work after the initial app start on my Apple TV. It took some time to review the blocked assets and some research in the web to combine all those to match the new (?) pattern.
The list with the allowed exceptions above seems to work for now and enables the service to bypass the starting screen and leads to the profile selection, therefore enabling the streaming experience once again. This is the status quo and may change in the near future once again – also further narrowing the sum of exceptions could also be another option for the future!