This is sometimes forgotten, but while most YouTube users pay nothing through an ad-supported free offer, the streaming service has a premium offer as well. In return for a monthly subscription, YouTube Premium allows you to enjoy some additional benefits such as the absence of ads or the ability to listen to music even when the application is in the background, however you can use free youtube to mp3 service to download youtube videos to mp3 format.
And obviously, Google has decided to use some of its tests to make this premium offer more interesting. In essence, the idea is that if you are a paid YouTube user, you will have the opportunity to test certain features before it becomes available to everyone.
This is what is revealed in an article published this week by the TechCrunch site. Google recently ran three tests on its app that are only accessible to YouTube Premium subscribers. One of these tests allows you to play the videos on the home screen (which is reminiscent of Facebook videos ). You can play a video as you scroll through this section. Another test adds new filtering options in the search and a third allows you to do voice searches on Chrome.
Normally, testing new features on YouTube can be accessed by anyone. And Google also confirmed to TechCrunch that this is the first time that it has linked testing programs to its premium offering.
The Mountain View firm would still have specified that all YouTube tests will not be reserved for subscribers of the premium offer. On the other hand, these three tests are only a small part of all the tests conducted on YouTube.
A new kind of advantage for subscribers of the paid YouTube offer
In any case, the intention to use certain tests to make YouTube Premium more interesting seems clear. It is recalled that currently, YouTube has more than 2 billion users, and 20 million paying subscribers on the premium offer.
Otherwise, recently, YouTube has been suspected of intentionally blocking the PiP functionality of iOS 14 to keep YouTube Premium interesting to internet users. This novelty of Apple's operating system allows you to play videos on a floating window, while using another application.
When iOS 14 was launched, this feature made it possible to watch YouTube videos (opened on Safari) on a floating window. But subsequently, the PiP was blocked by the YouTube mobile site, except for YouTube Premium subscribers. Later, the feature was finally unlocked. But to take advantage of it, it is still necessary to open YouTube on a Safari tab, instead of using the mobile application.