YouTube realises that the scope for digital content will increase. The Google-owned video streaming platform is reportedly open up all of its upcoming content to users for free.
This includes its exclusive content, which as of now is restricted to its premium subscribers. However, the content will be laced with frequent ads, which could be YouTube’s way of telling them to pay for its services if they don’t want to be bombarded with advertising content.
The access to YouTube’s exclusive content will only be available from 2020 onwards. However, YouTube Premium subscribers may not be too happy with this move.
The Premium service is limited to 29 countries as of now, and somehow YouTube hasn’t found it compelling enough to launch in India, where digital consumption is growing rapidly.
Digital streaming is slowly becoming the go-to form of media consumption for users. The likes of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Hotstar among others, can vouch for this trend. India, with its low-priced data plans, is likely to be a pivotal market for content creators.
It speaks volumes that global giants like Netflix and Amazon have come out with original content for the Indian market, which they feel is marketable across the globe. According to a Reuters report, YouTube could benefit from this flexibility, expanding its base to get more users on board and also rake in the money.
YouTube’s Premium plan costs as much as $12 (Rs 888 approx) in the United States, which might work for Netflix, but not sure if people will find it appealing to spend on YouTube, which has predominantly been a free streaming service since its origin.
To put this into context, Netflix charges up to Rs 800 for its premium plan per month in India, while both Amazon and Hotstar have been generous of sorts with Rs 999 annual plans. Amazon and Hotstar also have monthly packages charged at Rs 129 and Rs 199 respectively.
YouTube will be hoping that the ‘free’ proposition, that works like a charm with users in India, does its trick yet again. That is, if the free premium content does indeed come to our shores.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)