YouTube is putting the finishing touches to a paid subscription service that will allow customers to watch ad-free videos and download and store them offline.
According to a report by The Verge on Wednesday, the service is expected to launch in the next few months. It will cost around US$10 per month, although lower-priced subscription tiers may be offered for certain genres, such as children’s programming. Content creators will be able to put their videos behind a paywall so that only paying subscribers can watch them.
The subscription service will "generate a new source of revenue that will supplement your fast-growing advertising revenue," YouTube told video makers in an email published by Bloomberg on Wednesday.
While content owners will have a choice about whether to actually charge viewers to watch their videos or to continue with an ad-funded model, unnamed sources cited by The Verge said they must at least sign up to the subscription programme otherwise all t heir videos will be set to private.
YouTube already offers paid-for content in the form of an online store for TV shows and movies that allows customers to rent or purchase content outright. It is also trialling a beta version of a music subscription service, Music Key, that offers ad-free access to music with the option to download and store songs offline.
However, rolling out a fully-fledged monthly subscription service will put YouTube into direct competition with video streaming providers like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and HBO Now, among others.
There is also a potential risk that it could drive some elements of the audience – who browse YouTube looking for a temporary distraction – towards services more suited to casual viewing.
