Cheaper 'YouTube Premium Lite' Ad-Free Tier Reportedly Coming Soon

[MacRumors]

Google will imminently launch a new, more affordable YouTube "Premium Lite" tier in a bid to appeal to viewers who don't really watch music videos, Bloomberg reports.

The lower-priced version of YouTube's paid video subscription service will function largely without ads, though music videos on the platform will continue to include them for viewers on the Lite tier.

YouTube Premium is the service's existing $13.99-a-month plan in the US that lets subscribers watch everything on the service, including music videos, without ads.

"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," a YouTube spokesperson told Bloomberg. "We're hoping to expand this offering to even more users in the future with our partners' support."

The Verge reports that the Premium Lite plan has been tested in international markets for months. Now, it's set for a wider launch, including its debut in the US, Australia, Germany, and Thailand. The new tier will be announced soon, according to Bloomberg's sources.

The new follows YouTube's claim earlier this month that viewing figures for the platform on TV have now surpassed mobile and become the primary device for YouTube viewing in the United States.

Article Link: Cheaper 'YouTube Premium Lite' Ad-Free Tier Reportedly Coming Soon

 

[thefrost]

YouTube Premium Lite. 🤣

 

[contacos]

Loophole: VPN to countries like Albania and you won't be seeing any Ads since Google is not selling ad slots on YouTube there

 

[mark-in-mk]

Include offline downloads and we MIGHT be able to talk. Until then Ghostery rules.

 

[carniesandrubes]

Still on my $7.99 grandfathered plan from the Google Play Music All Access days.

But I'd still pay double that if I had to. It's that good.

Sure you can cobble together all kinds of third party hacks to get most of the same benefits (and constantly tweak them as Google makes changes to break them) but it's a documented fact that YouTube pays their creators a significantly higher percentage of their revenue compared to any other social media platform. So it's good to know the creators I watch get paid much more from my Premium payment than they would by me watching annoying ads.

 

[Eggtastic]

Bring back the thumbs down or is that too "offensive" to some sensitive people / parties?

 

[0049190]

Access to add free music videos is the main reason I subscribe to Apple Music.

 

[0049190]

I’ve already got too many paid subscriptions. I’m certainly not going to add another one to watch YouTube.

 

[Imac Sam]

Or if you are using a computer you can install an extension in Firefox, that skips them for you for free.

 

[dannyyankou]

What if there’s a video that just has copyrighted music in it? I’m guessing that will have ads?

 

[macfacts]

Include offline downloads and we MIGHT be able to talk. Until then Ghostery rules.

There's a python script called yt-dlp to download YouTube videos.

 

[Rradcircless]

YouTube Premium Lite. 🤣

They'll call it YouTube Medium

 

[ghostface147]

I’m fine with paying Verizon $10 a month for premium.

 

[Rradcircless]

Bring back the thumbs down or is that too "offensive" to some sensitive people / parties?

I miss dislikes to show if an informative video is any good.

 

[Rradcircless]

Shocking to see Google bring a low cost ad free thing out in this day and age.

 

[breiti]

a new YouTube Premium offering with most videos ad-free

What do they mean by... most?

 

[Frantisekj]

Ok. $3.99 sounds Good 😂

 

[gadgetfreak98]

What about downloads?

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

They'll call it YouTube Medium

No that's the one that lets you interact with the great beyond... and get likes from dead people.

 

[Channan]

Still on my $7.99 grandfathered plan from the Google Play Music All Access days.

Same. And I only keep it because of YouTube Music because I would never pay for no ads on YouTube. It’s just a nice bonus.

 

[cicalinarrot]

Loophole: VPN to countries like Albania and you won't be seeing any Ads since Google is not selling ad slots on YouTube there

I don't know who you are.
But if this is true
I will found you
And I will kiss you.

 

[dannys1]

I don't think i've watched a music video for over 20 years - please reduce my subscription price Google!

 

[kiranmk2]

Lots of solutions for bypassing ads on browsers that are easier and have more functionality that YT Premium (such as Sponsorblock, that skips those "sponsored by" sections in videos), but are there any solutions for the Apple TV that don't involve giving your YouTube login details to 3rd parties?

 

[klasma]

Bring back the thumbs down or is that too "offensive" to some sensitive people / parties?

It hurts “engagement”.

 

[stocklen]

Youtube is beyond ridiculous with its ads nowadays.

You can sit down to watch a video and get ads before starting... then literally 60 seconds into the video you get more ads. This is NOT a pleasant viewing experience and a classic example of greed overtaking the end user satisfaction.

Whoever thought that serving so many ads was a good idea...? We all understand the need for ads but there comes a time when it ruins the experience.

Why, also, do that ads have a 'skip' necessitating you hovering over a button when they appear - the skip point should be the end - and if you don't reach a button in time you are then subjected to even more!

It's a bit like websites that have so many ads on screen the actual content is constantly leaping about all over the place and lost in the sea of ads. When 90% of the screen is adverting then something has gone wrong and you have lost sight of the whole reason the content exists. No good if people switch off because of the ads.

Back to the tiers... in the UK we don't have annual just monthly and it's expensive. The only thing I would be interested in paying for is potentially losing the ads and I don't need music content as I get that elsewhere.
I tried the free trial and it made YouTube much more pleasant experience but I don't want to pay for music too.

Hopefully the ad free tier is a lot cheaper and therefore potentially worth having.