Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
TL;DR
- YouTube is piloting a new two-person Premium subscription tier, allowing users to share access with an additional person beyond themselves.
- The trial is currently being run in India, France, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. It offers select users discounted pricing for two people.
- This tier targets couples, roommates, and small households unsuitable for the existing Family or Individual plans.
YouTube has been on a mission since a few years to get free users converted to paid YouTube Premium subscribers, even going so far and increasingly gimping the user experience for ad-block users. The message is clear: YouTube is best enjoyed with a Premium subscription, or you must make peace with ads. If you’d like to take the plunge for the ad-free YouTube Premium experience, YouTube is now exploring a two-person Premium plan that lets you share your subscription with another user.
Moneycontrol reports that YouTube is piloting a new Premium subscription tier with select users in India, France, Taiwan, and Hong Kong that lets them share their YouTube Premium or YouTube Music Premium membership with another household member. Both members must be 13 years or older, have a Google account, and be a part of the same Google family group.
In India, the two-person YouTube Premium subscription tier is being offered for Rs. 219 (~$2.60) per month, while the shared YouTube Premium Music subscription is being offered for Rs. 149 (~$1.77) per month. Note that India has some of the cheapest YouTube Premium pricing in the world. If the pilot program extends to other regions, you can expect the Two-person pricing to align with your current pricing tiers.
YouTube confirmed the pilot program with a statement:
We’re experimenting with new ways to provide greater flexibility and value to our YouTube Premium subscribers, including offering a two-person Premium plan option, allowing two people to share a subscription at a reduced cost.
Notably, the Two-person plan sits alongside the Family and Individual plans. The tier pricing encourages sharing your YouTube Premium subscription with your family members to get the most bang for your buck. The Two-person plan is excellent for couples, roommates, and smaller households who may be unable to justify the Family plan. If you have three people in your household, the Family plan still works better than the Two-person one.
There’s no word on whether and when this Two-person plan will expand to other regions. If you are looking for a cheaper way to access (mostly) ad-free YouTube, you can also explore the YouTube Premium Lite subscription. This subscription provides access to ad-free videos across most video categories but shows ads on music, music videos, and Shorts. It also removes some coveted features like offline downloads and background playback, but it’s cheaper than the standard Premium plan.
Would you like to see the Two-person YouTube Premium plan expand to more regions? Vote below and let us know more in the comments below!
Would you subscribe to YouTube Premium two-person plan?
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