YouTube launches YouTube Red, an ad free subscription video streaming service

This has been a long time coming. YouTube has unveiled its ad free subscription video streaming service, YouTube Red. The service offers YouTube users a US$9.99 monthly membership.

The service will launch in the US first, with a one month trial on October 28. With the service users can save videos for later viewing and play videos in the background. Users will only need to make a single subscription and can watch ad free videos across their devices as they are logged in on their YouTube accounts. This will be extended to users who are using the Gaming app and the soon to be launched YouTube Music app.

YouTube is already laying down plans to expand YouTube Red. The plans sound very Netflixy. YouTube has announced that beginning next year, YouTube Red members will get access to new, original series and movies from some of YouTube’s biggest creators. Though the company is using the word ‘creators’, this is without a doubt a move towards that Netflix territory.

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Some of the series and movies users will enjoy include Scare PewDiePie, Sing It!, Lazer Team, A Trip to Unicorn Island, Untitled Joey Graceffa project, 360 Project from MatPat of Game Theory, Single by 30, Untitled CollegeHumor project, Fight of the Living Dead and I Am Tobuscus.

YouTube has also announced that is going to launch YouTube Music app. According to the company the app is designed to make music discovery and listening experience much easier. Though the app is free to use, it will have special features that can be unlocked with a YouTube Red subscription. These features include ad-free listening/viewing, background play, offline access, and more.

Those who do not want to pay for YouTube Red can still continue using the old YouTube. In the long run, to boost YouTube Red subscribers, YouTube might begin to move more content towards its subscription service and hide on the free service, ultimately stripping the free YouTube bare. Hopefully this does not happen.