Malcolm Owen
YouTube viewers may have to pay if they want high-resolution streams in future, as the video service is testing limiting 4K video resolution to Premium subscribers.
A number of users discovered in September that the option to play a YouTube video at 2,160p was restricted, accompanied by text claiming it was a "Premium" feature and to "Tap to upgrade" to it. The change allowed viewing of video at 1,440p and lower, but 4K was off limits for some people.
On Sunday, YouTube's Twitter account confirmed that affected users are "part of our experiment to know better the feature preferences Premium & non-Premium viewers." YouTube didn't formally announce the changes before they were introduced, but did request for feedback about it.
hi! it looks like your part of our experiment to know better the feature preferences Premium & non-Premium viewers. if you have more thoughts in mind, you can share it here so we can make improvements: https://t.co/P97P6LUQmf
— TeamYouTube (@TeamYouTube) October 2, 2022
It is unknown how many people are affected by the change, nor if it will be rolled out to all non-paying users, but it could be a major alteration to the service in multiple ways.
The most obvious one is that more people could sign up for the $11.99 YouTube Premium subscription to get 4K playback. YouTube Premium provides ad-free viewing, as well as YouTube Music Premium, downloadable videos, and the ability to play videos in the background on the iPhone and iPad.
Aside from bringing in money to YouTube, the change could also save the service money. High bandwidth requirements of 4K video could mean a reduction in cost if free users are limited to lower resolutions.
The burden of video streaming isn't only being felt by YouTube. Netflix, which already limits 4K to more costly plans, has worked to increase revenues by cracking down on password sharing and introducing an ad-supported tier.
YouTube has previously tested a cheaper ad-free "Premium Lite" tier of service, providing video streams but without the extra Premium level benefits.
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15 Comments
I watch youtube but I have no desire to use youtube music or play videos in the background. Youtube used to have an ad-free version for $5 and I would be willing to pay for that but $12 is a waste because I'm already paying for Apple Music. If youtube offered a family plan for just ad-free and 4K at $12, I'd be willing to buy that. I'd need the typical 4-5 viewers at the same time. Right now ads on Apple TV is messing up, causing momentary black screen (1-2 sec) during the second ad and when the video starts. No ads and it works fine.
An alternative would be for Apple to create a similar service, ad-free, pay-for-use service for a reasonable amount or money that would go to paying the video originators. This could be an extension of AppleTV+.
When this goes into effect for everyone I guess I’ll stop uploading 4K videos. I am not a “creator” getting paid so no need for me to worry about 4K.
There really shouldn't be an uproar about this. 4K videos do have a beefier demand on storage and operations.