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In July this year, Google increased the price of the YouTube Premium subscription in the US. The price hike is now rolling out internationally. As of November 1, YouTube Premium has gotten more expensive in seven other countries—Argentina, Australia, Austria, Chile, Germany, Poland, and Turkey.
YouTube Premium gets a price hike in several markets
Like previous hikes, Google is increasing the prices of all premium plans for YouTube and YouTube Music in these countries. Whether you have an individual, family, or student plan, the price is going up for all. The company has notified existing subscribers about this via email. The updated prices are effective immediately for new users but existing users will see their current prices for three more months.
As usual, the rate of increase varies according to the market. In Australia, this is the first-ever price hike for YouTube Premium. The individual plan now costs AU $16.99 in the country (via 9to5Google). The email that YouTube sent to existing premium subscribers says it doesn’t “make these decisions lightly.” The company adds that this hike will allow it to “continue to improve Premium and support the creators and artists you watch on YouTube.”
However, don’t expect any major changes to your experience. You aren’t getting any new features here. YouTube Premium gives you an ad-free experience along with features such as audio-only playback for videos, downloads for offline watching, high-bitrate 1080p Premium streaming quality, and co-watching videos in Google Meet. You also get early access to experimental features and YouTube Music Premium.
YouTube has declared war on ad blockers
YouTube’s latest price hike comes amid a war against the use of ad blockers. Following a limited effort earlier this year, the company recently started banning ad blockers globally. Once the warnings show up, users can watch a maximum of three videos before they have to disable their ad blocker. They must allow ads on YouTube or subscribe to YouTube Premium to continue.
You can subscribe to YouTube Premium through the Android and iOS apps as well as the web version. However, the iOS app adds Apple’s commission and costs a little more. So if you’re an Apple user, subscribing through the web is a cheaper option. The way Google is increasing prices globally, we won’t be surprised if it announces another round of price hikes in the coming months. If you’re a Premium subscriber, watch out for emails from YouTube.