In a nutshell: YouTube Premium for families is getting a price hike that'll bring the service more in line with its moniker. The YouTube Premium family plan now commands $22.99 per month for new subscribers, up from the previous $17.99 rate. A subscription offers an ad-free YouTube and YouTube Music experience for the primary account holder and up to five additional family members in the same household.
The perk additionally enables downloads for offline viewing and listening as well as background playback so you can use it while interacting with other apps or when your screen is locked.
YouTube spokesperson Marni Greenberg told The Verge that they don't make these decisions lightly, and realize how hard it may be for members. That said, Greenberg added that the new price reflects the complete value of YouTube Premium and will allow them to develop additional features and continue to support the creators and artists that members watch and listen to.
Greenberg added that the price adjustment will impact users in the US, Canada, Japan, Great Britain, Brazil, Indonesia, Turkey and Argentina.
Notably, the cost of an individual YouTube Premium plan remains unchanged at $11.99 per month and still represents a decent value for heavy YouTube users averse to ads.
To show its appreciation for user loyalty, YouTube is allowing some longstanding Premium subscribers to keep their current rate for a few more months. Select members won't see the price hike hit their bill until April 2023. As always, members have the flexibility to pause or cancel their membership at any time.
Google has published a support page where members can share feedback about the updated pricing. Amusingly enough, a note on the page indicates they are experiencing high contact volumes and to expect longer than normal wait times. Furthermore, users won't receive individual responses to their messages but Google ensures it monitors all feedback and opinions will be heard.
YouTube recently conducted a controversial experiment that limited playback of 4K video to Premium subscribers. It presumably didn't go over well as the video sharing platform ended it earlier this week.
Image credit: Adam Fejes