‘YouTube Red’ to start from October 28th
On Wednesday, YouTube finally announced the details around ‘YouTube Red,’ its first big stab into a premium, ad-free tier. Here’s everything we know so far, from both a creator and consumer standpoint.
“In the first decade of YouTube, the way we derived revenue was advertisers told us what the viewers’ eyeballs are worth,” said Robert Kyncl, YouTube’s chief business officer, speaking at a press event held in L.A. Wednesday. “In this case, it’s the user saying over time what those videos are worth.”
The YouTube Red $9.99 monthly price matches the current subscription price of Netflix’s standard two-stream HD plan. And the question for many in the industry, even among YouTube’s most loyal partners, is whether it will get any significant traction among users who have been trained for 10-plus years to expect free video on YouTube.
It will cost $12.99 for iOS users. This was confirmed by YouTube, based on a decision not to absorb Apple’s $3-per-month surcharge for App Store subscriptions. There’s early talk of a simple workaround, similar to Spotify, though at this stage it’s unclear whether Apple will enforce its cut.
YouTube Red will have a free, one-month trial window. It’s unclear if users will be asked to submit their credit cards upfront, like Apple Music (and subsequently face automatic charges if they forget to cancel in time).
