Google has announced a new YouTube subscription tier, which will allow viewers to get rid of ads and save videos for offline playback for the first time.
The new YouTube Red service announced on Wednesday will cost $9.99 (around £6.30) and will also include access to a new YouTube Music service, which appears to be the next step along the road for YouTube Music Key.
On the YouTube blog, the company wrote: “YouTube Music is designed to make discovering, watching and listening to
music easier than ever. Any song or artist you choose on YouTube Music
will start you on a personal journey through one of the richest music
catalogs; just sign in, tap a track you love, and see where your music
takes you.
“And as a special bonus – YouTube Red works with Google Play
Music, so subscribe to one and automatically get access to the other.”
It’ll be available across desktop and mobile devices, while also offer the same ad-free experiences within the recently revealed YouTube Gaming and YouTube Kids offshoots.
Subscribers to the service, which was first rumoured earlier this year, will also be able to continue to listen to YouTube videos in the background while using other apps.
The new apps and the opportunity to sign up for a free trial arrives in the US on October 28. Meanwhile YouTube Music is coming soon. Google said it is working to bring the platform to more countries soon.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YL9RetC0ook
Google also announced it plans to bring exclusive original content for YouTube Red members from next year. There’ll be new content from some of the service’s top original contributors as well as full length movies.
The announcement makes YouTube much more of a Netflix rival than it has ever been, while Spotify will surely view the move with interest.
See also: What is Google Now on tap?
Ad-free access will be a big pull for many viewers perturbed by the firm’s ever-present pre-roll clips. Offline playback is another big pull, while bundling in an excellent music streaming service makes YouTube Red seem like excellent value for $10 a month.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
