Summary
- A YouTube Premium Lite plan may launch in the US soon.
- Previous Lite tests outside the US removed features and cut costs.
- The new plan may expand to other regions as well. The price of the plan is unknown.
For most, YouTube is enjoyed without any cost, but if you want an experience free from ads, you’re left with using ad blockers or paying for its Premium service. Of course, that $14-per-month price tag isn’t cheap, especially considering that subscribers only get a minimal number of perks.
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But the question needs to be asked: Would more people pay for Premium if it was cheaper? We’ve heard rumblings of a cheaper plan being tested outside of the United States, and it now appears that something similar might be making its way to the US soon.
A new plan coming soon?
According to Bloomberg, a new tier of YouTube Premium will make its debut in the US. As far as what the new “Lite” plan will offer, it will provide users with ad-free access to “most videos.” If the new Lite plan is anything like the old one that was being tested, it should be pretty bare bones.
Previous tests of Lite outside the US have seen features like YouTube Music, offline downloads, and background playback stripped from the experience. These measures are necessary to not only cut the cost, but to also create a difference between each tier of service being offered.
While this all sounds pretty exciting, the real question is, and always has been, are people willing to pay for YouTube? And if that is the case, then what’s the sweet spot when it comes to price and features for his upcoming Lite tier? It’s also important to note that this tier will reportedly find its way to other regions like Australia, Germany and Thailand.
People have been asking to have a cheaper option for a long time, and this could finally be the moment we’ve all been waiting for.