The problem is that once it will be normal to request IDs for porn, the same will be extended to everything else with excuses like “let’s do it for the kids” or “if you don’t have anything to hide…”.
VPNs… yeah sure, until there will be a crackdown on those too.
Of course, but in this case “being an alternative” really depends on the goal. To produce content they may be all valid, to monetise content there will be differences, but to consume content none is really comparable to YouTube.
There is also Vimeo.
However, none of these is a true alternative to YouTube in terms of content.
This is a big pain point of the iPhone. You can use Proton or other providers, but you will be stuck with iCloud for your backups.
The issue with the iPhone is that you need to trust Apple. They have a decent reputation (obviously someone will immediately say “nooo, it’s baaad!!1”), and it has a good trade-off security/usability, but it’s just like a top quality over-the-counter medicine. If you want the real stuff, there will be side effects (on features).