Is YouTube Red Worth the Additional Cost?

YouTube Red went live to mixed emotions. How could this normally free service offer a paid subscription account? With a $10 a month subscription cost, you may have found yourself wondering, “Is YouTube Red worth the cost?” The short answer: it depends.

Ad-Free Experience

YouTube power users will most likely benefit from an ad-free YouTube experience. YouTube Red will allow these users to skip the site’s 25-30 second ads. Still, most YouTube videos let users skip the ad after watching for five seconds. For the rest of the population that only occasionally uses YouTube to hunt for cat videos, it may not be as important to create a completely streamlined video watching experience.

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Original YouTube Red Content

Taking a cue from Netflix, YouTube Red will also produce their own original content. The story ideas encompass a wide range, from zombies to a full-length sci-fi film. If this content is anything close to the caliber of the Netflix originals (hello, Stranger Things), paying $10 a month might be much more justifiable.

Google Play Music

When was the last time you bought a CD? It’s probably been awhile. Services like Google Play Music make it much easier to enjoy the music you love, when you want. You can download up to 50,000 songs, and stream them from whichever device supports the platform. You can listen to any song in the Google Play Music library ad-free, too. What’s this have to do with YouTube Red? If you are a user, you get free access to Google Play services. Now that’s a nice little bonus.

The Cons of YouTube Red

For the less popular YouTube uploaders, YouTube Red has the potential to undermine these users’ content, making it clear that they’re not part of the YouTube elite. That’s not a nice place to be. The service even forced some power users into YouTube Red against their will — or they would have lost their uploads.

Should You Get YouTube Red?

The bottom line is this: if you are a constant YouTube user and already use Google Play Music, then the upgrade is a no-brainer. However, if you only occasionally hop on the site and already have your own favorite music streaming site, then don’t bother.

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