Google improves YouTube Premium Lite
Google enhances YouTube's Premium Lite subscription: users can now play videos in the background on their mobile phones. Downloads are also unlocked.
(Image: Shutterstock.com/photosince)
Google is introducing several features into the YouTube Premium Lite subscription that were previously exclusive to the more expensive Premium subscription. From now on, users of the Premium Lite subscription will also be able to play “most videos” in the background on smartphones and tablets.
Furthermore, Google is enabling the option for Premium Lite users to download “most” YouTube videos. Videos saved offline in this way can then be watched without an internet connection. Both features were previously reserved for subscribers of the more expensive Premium subscription. Restrictions apparently include music videos, which are also not ad-free in the Premium Lite subscription.
The improvements to YouTube Premium Lite will be implemented first in the USA, with other markets to follow in the coming weeks. The update will also be rolled out in Germany “gradually starting now,” Google informed heise online upon request. However, the new features are not yet noted in the German documentation or on the booking pages.
Price remains the same
The price of YouTube Premium Lite will not change; users will continue to pay 6 euros per month for YouTube's entry-level subscription. The full Premium subscription costs more than double per month at 13 euros. It is slightly cheaper for students (7.50 Euros per month) or if you pay for a whole year (130 Euros, i.e., 10.8 Euros per month). The YouTube Premium family subscription covers up to six people and costs 24 euros per month.
Videos by heise
After the improvements to YouTube Premium Lite, the two subscription variants mainly differ in their handling of advertising: while YouTube Premium is completely ad-free, YouTube Premium Lite may still display ad interruptions for some content. This includes music videos, Shorts, and videos found via search.
YouTube originally introduced Premium Lite in 2021. In 2023, YouTube discontinued the Premium Lite subscription and issued cancellations to existing customers. Last year, Google finally announced that Premium Lite would return. It can now be booked by all users in Germany.
(dahe)
