YouTube’s Premium paid subscription includes benefits like ad-free viewing, video and song downloads for offline consumption, and background plays. Now, it might also be shifting video streaming in 4K resolution (currently free for all users) to the premium tier.
Over the weekend, users across Reddit and Twitter noted that YouTube had been asking them to upgrade to the premium tier to watch videos in 4K.
It’s not clear if the change is part of a limited test, or if the company is thinking about capping free users to 1440p resolution. Google refused to comment on the story when contacted by TechCrunch.
The company has tried various methods to convert free users into paying ones. One of the most notorious ones was showing them up to 11 unskippable ads before the start of a long video to let them have an uninterrupted experience.
Last year, Google said that it crossed the 50 million subscriber mark across YouTube Music and Premium. While the price of these subscriptions varies across regions, in the US, it charges $9.99 per month for YouTube Music and $11.99 per month for YouTube Premium.
In its Q2 2022 earnings, the search giant said that YouTube brought in $6.87 billion in revenue — which was much lower than analyst expectations of $7.51 billion. So it’s not unexpected that the company might try new ways to increase paid users for its video streaming services.
Last week, YouTube TV launched a new program to let users subscribe to add-on channels like Showtime, HBO Max, NBA League Pass, and MLB.TV without purchasing a $64.99 a month base plan.
YouTube is asking some users to purchase a Premium subscription to watch in 4K by Ivan Mehta originally published on TechCrunch
