Is ‘YouTube Lite’ the Answer to Access Ad-Free Video Content?
We’ve all been there. Watching a YouTube video, fully engrossed in the latest content uploaded by your favorite creator, when boom—an ad for some random product you don’t need (but the algorithm insists you want) interrupts your watching. “Skip ad in 5… 4… 3…” But even after you skip, another ad pops up. It’s like you’re in an arcade playing the most annoying game of whack-a-mole.
Fortunately, YouTube rolled out YouTube Lite, a subscription that promises subscribers an ad-free watching experience for half the price of Premium.
What is YouTube Lite?
As reported by CNET, the Google-owned streaming platform rolled out YouTube Lite to the US after testing it in Europe four years ago. Aside from Europe, YouTube Lite was also offered to subscribers in Germany, Thailand, and Australia.
Per YouTube’s blog, the more affordable subscription tier, “gives viewers a new, more affordable way to enjoy most videos on YouTube ad-free for $7.99 per month.” The difference between the two is that with Lite, most videos are ad-free, but not music, music videos, downloads, and background play.
YouTube suggests choosing the subscription based on your preferences and desired benefits. If you’re using YouTube to watch gaming, comedy, cooking, or learning videos, YouTube Lite will suffice. However, if you want “ad-free music on YouTube and YouTube Music, plus offline and background play, we recommend the Premium plan.”
In an episode of Creator Insider, YouTube’s Chief Product Officer Johanna Voolich revealed that the cheaper YouTube Lite is what the majority of the subscribers want. She said, “When we talked to our users, what we found is there are a whole swath of people who want an ad-free, uninterrupted streaming service, but they don’t necessarily want a music service.”
With YouTube Lite, the platform can be considered a competitor to Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney, and other video content streaming platforms rather than a music-streaming alternative. However, based on the comments of social media users in the video above, it seems that subscribers would prefer YouTube to get rid of “Shorts” or videos that are less than 180 seconds.
One user wrote, “Please either get rid of shorts or give us the option to remove shorts from our home page. Like a disable button that we can choose to turn on or off.” Another commented, “I would pay to get rid of shorts.”
There are Premium users who also commented about what they believe could make their subscription better. One wrote, “Give people who buy premium a free membership to a channel of their choice!” Another user seems to sum up a majority of the comments, writing, “Why does YouTube do the opposite of what people really want for this platform…? if YouTube listened to its community, it would be 100 times better.”
