Google’s Ad-Free YouTube Subscription Service Coming Next Month

YouTube has been planning to introduce subscriptions to remove advertisements from its website for quite some time, and it seems we're on the verge of it finally rolling out. Yesterday, the company sent out an email to content providers requesting them to agree to updated terms; if they fail to do so, their videos will either stop being monetized, or stop being shown in the US.

In the email, it's noted that 95% of partners have signed up so far, and given the side-effects of not doing so, that's not too much of a surprise. If you happen to be a YouTube content creator, you'll want to log in before October 22nd and agree to the terms.

What remains to be seen is how this revenue will be split up, or if the subscription will in fact increase revenue for content creators over traditional advertising. One thing seems certain, though: a lot of views will be needed for substantial revenue to be generated.

Of course, it also remains to be seen whether or not people will shell out ~$10/mo for the privilege of removing ads on the service. However, it does seem that Google could have another trick up its sleeve to add to the appeal: it could wrap Google Play Music into the same service. That service already costs $10/mo, so if true, Google would be banking big on the fact that it could attract many more subscribers, negating the effects of suddenly receiving less revenue on its current subscribers.

An ad-free experience for $10/mo might seem like a bit much, but tie in unlimited music streaming with it, and we might just have a winner. As someone who watches a fair bit of content on YouTube and have thoroughly enjoyed Spotify in the past, I'd be extremely tempted to jump on such a deal if it were to exist. What about you?