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YouTube Music

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YouTube Music
Screenshot of a user's home page in 2024
DeveloperYouTube
Key people
  • Neal Mohan (YouTube CEO)
  • T. Jay Fowler (Director of Product Management)
  • Lyor Cohen (Global Head of YouTube & Music)
TypeMusic and Video Streaming
Launch dateNovember 12, 2015; 8 years ago (2015-11-12)
Platform(s)
Members100 million paid subscribers (including YouTube Premium; as of January 2024)[1]
Availability119 countries and territories; mostly in the Americas, Europe and Oceania, and in parts of Africa and Asia (see full list)
Websitemusic.youtube.com

YouTube Music is a music streaming service developed by the American video platform YouTube, a subsidiary of Google. The service is designed with a user interface that allows users to explore songs and music videos on YouTube based on genres, playlists, and recommendations. In April 2023, the service expanded its offerings to include support for podcasts.[2]

YouTube Music also features a premium tier that provides several benefits to subscribers. These include ad-free playback, the ability to play audio in the background, and the option to download songs for offline listening. These benefits are also available to subscribers of YouTube Premium. On December 1, 2020, YouTube Music replaced Google Play Music as Google's primary brand for music streaming.

History

[edit]

The YouTube Music app was unveiled in October 2015 and released the following month; its release came alongside the unveiling of YouTube Premium (originally called YouTube Red), a larger subscription service that covers the entirety of the YouTube platform, including the Music app. Although redundant to Google's existing Google Play Music All Access subscription service, the app was designed for users who primarily consume music through YouTube.[3][4]

On May 17, 2018, YouTube announced a new version of the YouTube Music service, including a web-based desktop player and redesigned mobile app, more dynamic recommendations based on various factors, and the use of Google artificial intelligence technology to search songs based on lyrics and descriptions. In addition, YouTube Music became a separate subscription service (positioned as a more direct competitor to Apple Music and Spotify), offering ad-free and background/audio-only streaming, and downloading for offline playback, for music content on YouTube. The service's benefits continued to be available as part of the existing YouTube Premium service and to Google Play Music All Access subscribers. The YouTube Music subscription was priced in line with its competitors at US$9.99 per-month; the price of YouTube Premium was concurrently increased to $11.99 for new subscribers.[5][6]

In 2018, YouTube Music reached multiple sponsorship agreements with Dick Clark Productions to serve as a partner for its television specials Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve and the American Music Awards.[7][8]

YouTube Music became available on Google Assistant smart speakers (including Google Nest smart speakers) on April 18, 2019, with feature-limited ad-supported playback available for non-subscribers in only a limited number of countries.[9]

On July 8, 2024, YouTube Music was updated in Canada to prevent background play unless the users subscribe to YouTube Music or YouTube Premium, bringing it to the same experience in most countries.[10]

Features

[edit]

The availability of music includes many releases from mainstream artists and extends to any video categorized as music on the YouTube service.

YouTube Music initially operated parallel with Google Play Music, but the latter was shut down in December 2020.[11] Product manager Elias Roman stated in 2018 that they aimed to reach feature parity with Google Play Music before migrating users to it, but as of 2024 this has not been achieved.[12][13][14]

In September 2019, YouTube Music replaced Google Play Music in the core Google Mobile Services bundle distributed on new Android devices.[15][16] In May 2020, an update was released to allow imports from Google Play Music, including purchased music, playlists, cloud libraries, and recommendations.[17] The service still contains regressions over Google Play Music, including no online music store functionality (cannot purchase songs), and a YouTube Music Premium subscription being required to cast cloud library speakers to Google Nest smart speakers. Google stated that they planned to address this and other "gaps" in features between the services before Play Music is shut down. However, at the time of the shutdown, most feature gaps had not been addressed.[13][14]

A "pre-save" feature for upcoming releases was added in May 2020.[18]

In February 2023, YouTube Music launched Radio Builder, a free and from anywhere accessible web service for both paying subscribers and free users with iOS or Android devices. It allows users to create a custom radio station, selecting up to 30 artists with an option to hear only their songs or from comparable musicians.[19][20][21]

In April 2023, podcasts were added to the service, initially for users in the US only with a worldwide rollout planned at later date.[2][22] Google Podcasts was shut down worldwide in June 2024 with YouTube Music replacing it.[23][24]

Subscriptions

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The free tier plays songs in its music video version where applicable. The premium tier plays official tracks of the album unless the user searches for the music video version. YouTube Music Premium and YouTube Premium subscribers can switch to an audio-only mode that can play in the background while the application is not in use. The free tier does not allow audio-only mode with background playback as it displays video advertisements.[4]

The free tier's audio quality supports up to 128 kbit/s, in AAC and OPUS audio formats, while 256 kbit/s AAC is only available to premium tier subscribers.[25] In July 2024, YouTube rolled out an additional high quality option, 256 kbit/s OPUS, to premium tier subscribers.[26]

YouTube Music Premium and YouTube Premium plans are available in individual and family variants. A family plan allows up to six family members from the same household to access plan features. Eligible students can obtain a discount on an individual plan.

Subscription tiers Ads Skipping and scrubbing Offline mode Background playback Audio quality
Free Yes Unlimited Podcast only Podcast only 32, 48, 64, 128 kbit/s OPUS
32, 48 kbit/s HE-AAC, 128 kbit/s AAC[25]
Music Premium None Unlimited Available Available All free tier qualities, including 256 kbit/s AAC & OPUS[26]
Premium None Unlimited Available Available All free tier qualities, including 256 kbit/s AAC & OPUS[26]

Geographic availability

[edit]

As of March 2024, the service is available in 119 countries & territories.[27] Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Google indefinitely suspended all of its all payment and subscription-based services in the country, including YouTube Music.[28][29]

Countries where YouTube Music is available (as of March 2024)
History of expansion
Date Countries/regions Reference(s)
May 22, 2018
  • Australia Australia
  • Mexico Mexico
  • New Zealand New Zealand
  • South Korea South Korea (paid only)
  • United States United States
 [30][31]
June 18, 2018
  • Austria Austria
  • Canada Canada
  • Finland Finland
  • Norway Norway
  • Germany Germany
  • Republic of Ireland Ireland
  • Italy Italy
  • Norway Norway
  • Russia Russia (suspended on March 10, 2022 until further notice)
  • Spain Spain
  • Sweden Sweden
  • United Kingdom United Kingdom
 [32][33][31]
August 29, 2018
  • Belgium Belgium
  • Netherlands Netherlands
  • Denmark Denmark
  • Luxembourg Luxembourg
 [34]
September 26, 2018
  • Brazil Brazil
 [35]
November 14, 2018
  • Chile Chile
  • Colombia Colombia
  • Japan Japan
  • Peru Peru
  • Portugal Portugal
  • Switzerland Switzerland
  • Ukraine Ukraine
 [36]
March 13, 2019
  • Argentina Argentina
  • Bolivia Bolivia
  • Costa Rica Costa Rica
  • Dominican Republic Dominican Republic
  • Ecuador Ecuador
  • El Salvador El Salvador
  • Guatemala Guatemala
  • Honduras Honduras
  • India India
  • Nicaragua Nicaragua
  • Panama Panama
  • Paraguay Paraguay
  • South Africa South Africa
  • Uruguay Uruguay
 [37]
May 16, 2019
  • Bulgaria Bulgaria
  • Cyprus Cyprus
  • Czech Republic Czech Republic
  • Hungary Hungary
  • North Macedonia North Macedonia
  • Poland Poland
  • Romania Romania
 [38]
July 17, 2019
  • Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia & Herzegovina
  • Croatia Croatia
  • Estonia Estonia
  • Greece Greece
  • Iceland Iceland
  • Latvia Latvia
  • Liechtenstein Liechtenstein
  • Lithuania Lithuania
  • Malta Malta
  • Serbia Serbia
  • Slovakia Slovakia
  • Slovenia Slovenia
  • Turkey Turkey
 [39][40]
September 11, 2019
  • Bahrain Bahrain
  • Israel Israel
  • Kuwait Kuwait
  • Lebanon Lebanon
  • Oman Oman
  • Qatar Qatar
  • Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia
  • United Arab Emirates United Arab Emirates
 [41][42]
November 6, 2019
  • Hong Kong Hong Kong
  • Indonesia Indonesia
  • Malaysia Malaysia
  • Philippines Philippines
  • Singapore Singapore
  • Taiwan Taiwan
  • Thailand Thailand
 [43][44]
March 10, 2020
  • Nigeria Nigeria
  • Turks and Caicos Islands Turks and Caicos Islands
  • Venezuela Venezuela
 [45]
June 10, 2020
  • American Samoa American Samoa
  • Aruba Aruba
  • Belarus Belarus
  • Bermuda Bermuda
  • Cayman Islands Cayman Islands
  • Egypt Egypt
  • French Guiana French Guiana
  • French Polynesia French Polynesia
  • Guadeloupe Guadeloupe
  • Guam Guam
  • Northern Mariana Islands Northern Mariana Islands
  • Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea
  • Puerto Rico Puerto Rico
  • United States Virgin Islands U.S. Virgin Islands
 [46][47]
April 12, 2023
  • Vietnam Vietnam
 [48]
August 2, 2023
  • Bangladesh Bangladesh
  • Nepal Nepal
  • Pakistan Pakistan
  • Sri Lanka Sri Lanka
 [49][50][51]
December 5, 2023
  • Algeria Algeria
  • Cambodia Cambodia
  • Georgia (country) Georgia
  • Ghana Ghana
  • Iraq Iraq
  • Jordan Jordan
  • Kenya Kenya
  • Laos Laos
  • Senegal Senegal
  • Tunisia Tunisia
 [52][53][54][55]
March 14, 2024
  • Azerbaijan Azerbaijan
  • Jamaica Jamaica
  • Kazakhstan Kazakhstan
  • Libya Libya
  • Morocco Morocco
  • Réunion Réunion
  • Tanzania Tanzania
  • Uganda Uganda
  • Yemen Yemen
  • Zimbabwe Zimbabwe
 [56][57][58]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Smith, Adam (February 1, 2024). "Crossing 100 million YouTube Music and Premium subscribers, thanks to you". YouTube Official Blog. Retrieved February 4, 2024.
  2. ^ a b Malik, Aisha (April 27, 2023). "YouTube Music officially rolls out podcasts for listeners in the US". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on April 27, 2023. Retrieved April 27, 2023.
  3. ^ "Exclusive: An inside look at the new ad-free YouTube Red". The Verge. Archived from the original on April 4, 2019. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  4. ^ a b "YouTube Music isn't perfect, but it's still heaven for music nerds". Engadget. November 12, 2015. Archived from the original on November 12, 2020. Retrieved November 7, 2016.
  5. ^ "New YouTube Music Premium costs $9.99 monthly, add $2 to get all Red perks". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on July 9, 2018. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
  6. ^ "Google announces YouTube Music and YouTube Premium". The Verge. Archived from the original on August 14, 2020. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  7. ^ Spangler, Todd (August 22, 2018). "YouTube Music Signs American Music Awards Two-Year Title Sponsorship Deal". Variety. Archived from the original on October 10, 2018. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
  8. ^ Hayes, Dade (November 13, 2018). "YouTube Music And Dick Clark Productions Extend Partnership For 'New Year's Rockin' Eve With Ryan Seacrest'". Deadline. Archived from the original on November 20, 2018. Retrieved November 19, 2018.
  9. ^ "YouTube Music is now free with ads on Google Home devices". TechCrunch. April 18, 2019. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  10. ^ "Reddit Post". May 30, 2024.
  11. ^ "Info about the Google Play Music phase-out". Google. Archived from the original on December 19, 2020. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  12. ^ "YouTube Music will eventually get Google Play Music's best features, including user uploads". The Verge. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2018.
  13. ^ a b Amadeo, Ron (August 4, 2020). "Google Music shutdown starts this month, music deleted in December". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved September 11, 2020.
  14. ^ a b Amadeo, Ron (June 24, 2020). "With YouTube Music, Google is holding my speakers for ransom". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on February 7, 2021. Retrieved September 11, 2020.
  15. ^ Welch, Chris (September 27, 2019). "YouTube Music will now come preinstalled on Android devices". The Verge. Archived from the original on September 24, 2020. Retrieved October 8, 2019.
  16. ^ "YouTube Music will be preinstalled on Android 10 and new Android 9 devices". TechCrunch. September 27, 2019. Archived from the original on October 8, 2019. Retrieved October 8, 2019.
  17. ^ Welch, Chris (May 12, 2020). "YouTube Music can finally import your library and uploads from Google Play Music". The Verge. Archived from the original on October 18, 2020. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
  18. ^ Al-Heeti, Abrar. "YouTube Music now lets you pre-save albums". CNET. Archived from the original on August 11, 2020. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  19. ^ "YouTube Music will let you make your own custom radio stations / You". The Verge. February 21, 2023. Archived from the original on February 23, 2023. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  20. ^ "With 'Radio Builder', create your own custom station on YouTube Music: All you need to know". Hindustan Times. February 23, 2023. Archived from the original on February 23, 2023. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  21. ^ "YouTube Music launches 'Radio Builder' feature, allowing users to create custom stations based on favorite artists". Business Insider. February 22, 2023. Archived from the original on February 23, 2023. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  22. ^ Chan, J. Clara (February 25, 2023). "YouTube's Podcast Play Comes Into Focus Amid Skepticism From Creators". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 26, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  23. ^ "Farewell Google Podcasts". RadioInfo Australia. June 26, 2024. Retrieved October 18, 2024.
  24. ^ "YouTube gets 'Your podcasts' page as Google Podcasts shuts down internationally". Times of India. June 25, 2024. Retrieved October 18, 2024.
  25. ^ a b "Youtube Format IDs". GitHub.
  26. ^ a b c "Youtube Format IDs". GitHub.
  27. ^ "Where is YouTube Music available?". YouTube Music Help. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
  28. ^ "YouTube, Google Play suspend payment-based services in Russia". Reuters. March 10, 2022.
  29. ^ "Which Music Industry Companies Are Leaving Russia? Here's a Complete List". Digital Music News. March 11, 2022.
  30. ^ "Introducing YouTube Premium". YouTube Official Blog. May 17, 2018.
  31. ^ a b Deahl, Dani (June 18, 2018). "YouTube Music and YouTube Premium officially launch in US, Canada, UK, and other countries". The Verge. Archived from the original on June 18, 2018. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
  32. ^ "YouTube Music and YouTube Premium launch in 17 countries: It's all here". YouTube Official Blog. June 18, 2018.
  33. ^ Gao, Richard (June 18, 2018). "YouTube Premium and Music launch today in 17 countries, including Canada and 11 European countries". Android Police. Archived from the original on June 19, 2018. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
  34. ^ El Khoury, Rita (August 29, 2018). "YouTube Premium and Music Premium are now available in The Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, and Luxembourg". Android Police.
  35. ^ El Khoury, Rita (September 26, 2018). "YouTube Premium and Music Premium launch in Brazil". Android Police.
  36. ^ Ivan (November 14, 2018). "YouTube Premium and Music Premium expand to seven new countries". GSMArena. Archived from the original on April 24, 2019. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  37. ^ Wilde, Damien (March 13, 2019). "YouTube Music and Premium rolling out to 14 nations including India, South Africa". 9to5Google.
  38. ^ Dwivedi, Roshan (May 16, 2019). "YouTube Premium now available in 7 European countries". Muvi One.
  39. ^ El Khoury, Rita (July 17, 2019). "YouTube Premium and Music launch in 13 new countries, now available in more than 60". Android Police.
  40. ^ King, Ashley (July 18, 2019). "YouTube Premium and YouTube Music Add 13 More Countries to Reach 63 Total — But Adoption Remains Weak". Digital Music News.
  41. ^ "YouTube Premium and Music expand to 8 new countries in the Middle East". Android Central. September 11, 2019. Archived from the original on December 1, 2020. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  42. ^ El Khoury, Rita (September 11, 2019). "YouTube Premium and Music launch in 8 new countries in the Middle East". Android Police.
  43. ^ El Khoury, Rita (November 6, 2019). "YouTube Premium and Music launch in 7 Asian markets". Android Police.
  44. ^ England, Jason (November 6, 2019). "YouTube Premium and Music expand to seven new regions in Asia". Android Central.
  45. ^ Wang, Jules (March 10, 2020). "YouTube Premium and Music now available in Nigeria, Turks and Caicos Islands, Venezuela". Android Police.
  46. ^ Michail (June 10, 2020). "YouTube Premium and Music now available in 14 more countries". GSMArena. Archived from the original on October 3, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  47. ^ Mohan, Babu (June 11, 2020). "YouTube Premium and Music are now available in 14 new markets". Android Central.
  48. ^ Quy, Luu (April 12, 2023). "YouTube Premium rolls out in Vietnam". VnExpress International.
  49. ^ "YouTube Premium launched in Bangladesh at BDT 239 per month". The Daily Star. August 3, 2023.
  50. ^ "YouTube Premium and YouTube Music arrive in Pakistan". The Express Tribune. August 2, 2023.
  51. ^ "YouTube Premium is now available in Sri Lanka". ReadME Sri Lanka. August 2, 2023.
  52. ^ Abodalo, Liliana (December 12, 2023). "YouTube Music & Premium expands to Algeria, Jordan, Iraq and Tunisia". Google Blog (Mideast & North Africa).
  53. ^ Awofisayo, Addy (December 6, 2023). "YouTube Music & Premium land in Kenya, Senegal, and Ghana". Google Blog (Africa).
  54. ^ Li, Abner (December 18, 2023). "YouTube Premium and Music Premium launching in 10 more countries". 9to5Google.
  55. ^ Keverenge, Hillary (December 6, 2023). "YouTube Premium lands in Kenya for Kshs 499 per month". Android Kenya. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  56. ^ Abodalo, Liliana (March 18, 2024). "YouTube Music & Premium expands to Morocco, Libya and Yemen". Google Blog (Mideast & North Africa).
  57. ^ Mathur, Chandraveer (March 14, 2024). "YouTube Premium expands to 10 new countries, including 1 in North America". Android Police.
  58. ^ "YouTube Premium now available in 10 more countries". GSMArena. March 14, 2024.
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