Head of content for Google’s Youtube, Robert Kyncl confirms that youtube is about to launch a subscription only service to access some of their videos.
The next time you want to watch a Youtube you may be asked to pay as according to Kyncl the site is getting ready to launch a subscription service, asking for a monthly fee to access exclusive content.
While most of Youtube will remain free, sources state that for as little as $1.99 per month customers could get access to exclusive videos and television series.
These fees are set to bring Youtube closer to the model of companies such as Netflix that offers movie and TV series screening. The move will also help monetize on advertising which has grown by 29 percent since 2011.
“Its a whole new skills set to develop to get people to actually take out a credit card. You will see a lot of experimentation with folks with those models. Over time, a lot of people will figure it out, but it will take lots of iteration,” stated Kyncl.
YouTube also issued a statement confirming there was “nothing to announce at this time” but that they were “looking into creating a subscription platform that could bring even more great content to Youtube for our users to enjoy and provide our partners with another vehicle to generate revenue from their content, beyond the rental and ad-supported models we offer.”