A new YouTube subscription tier could come sooner than you think, as Google could be going ahead with the relaunch of YouTube Premium Lite, a budget-friendly version of its YouTube Premium tier which lived for a short two years before being axed in 2023. The tier is designed for those who want to use YouTube for ad-free video content rather than music, creating a new subscription tier that separates the YouTube Premium and YouTube Music bundling.
According to Bloomberg ($/£), YouTube Premium Lite will be announced in the US, Australia, Germany, and Thailand soon, but has been testing overseas for months as reported by The Verge. Since news broke out, a YouTube spokesperson stated “as part of our commitment to provide our users with more choice and flexibility, we’ve been testing a new YouTube Premium offering with most videos ad-free in several of our markets”. At the moment subscription prices are not set in stone, however, a user on Threads posted a screenshot (see below) of a prospective price range for the US version of the tier back in October - around the time when YouTube confirmed it was in testing.
Post by @jonahmanzanoView on Threads
It’s a no-brainer that YouTube Premium Lite will remove ads from videos, but from what has been said about its relaunch so far, that seems to be the only benefit it will bring to the table. Unlike the higher-priced YouTube Premium tier, which includes handy new tricks and additional benefits including offline downloads, background playback, and full advantage of YouTube Music, these features won’t be part of the lower-priced ‘Lite’ tier
As it stands, users who subscribe to YouTube Premium have full access to the music streaming service YouTube Music which allows you to stream music and podcasts and watch music videos without ads. As described by Bloomberg, YouTube Premium Lite is designed to ‘target viewers who primarily want to watch programs other than music videos’, therefore only music videos will still include ads. Though ads won’t be completely eradicated in the ‘Lite’ tier, it’s still enough to entice new customers who currently rely on music streaming platforms that aren’t YouTube Music.
A saving grace for non-YouTube Music users
For many people like myself, we’ve resorted to the best music streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music, and even Tidal to get the most out of our listening experiences. I don’t know of anyone close to me who uses YouTube Premium for that matter, and the only thing I can pin it down to is because its bundling with YouTube Music seems a little pointless when they use alternative services. This is why I think that YouTube Premium Lite could provide that long-needed separation between video and music streaming.
YouTube Premium has always been one of those services that I’ve never seen the appeal for. That’s only because I’m a loyal Spotify user and therefore have no reason to use YouTube Music. However, after hearing the rumors that YouTube Premium Lite could be on the way, I’m prepared to surrender.
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