YouTube may make 4K videos exclusive to premium users
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San Francisco: Video streaming platform YouTube may limit access to 4K videos and make it exclusive to premium users.
Some users have noticed that the 4K quality option is blocked behind YouTube's paywall. A screenshot shared by a user shows that the 4K option comes with a small banner underneath which reads premium. Other options like 1440p (2K) and 1080p (FHD) remain available for all.
According to MacRumors, some users on Reddit and Twitter mentioned this change on iOS. However, there has been no official announcement yet and it is unclear whether YouTube plans to move forward with this. If implemented widely, the change is likely to be unwelcome.
YouTube launched its premium model in 2014 but started pushing it in recent years. It is even testing multiple unskippable ads. The plan cost $11.99 in the US and Rs 139 in India. It provides ad-free videos, background playback, and the option to download videos for offline viewing.
The company recently said a feature allowing users to zoom in on any video is being tested.
YouTube has been trying hard to promote the paid model. In Q2 2022, YouTube brought in $6.87 billion in revenue. This was over a billion dollars less than the projected $7.51 billion expectations.
