Google is set to introduce new paid subscriptions for specialist video channels on YouTube, as it looks to move beyond its main advertising revenue stream and deliver a wider range of content. Google could launch the new service, with up to 50 YouTube channels offering subscriptions to video content from $1.99 a month. Reports of Google’s subscription plans emerged earlier this year. In March, YouTube Vice President Robert Kyncl said subscriptions were “incredibly important” as a tool to create “additional revenue streams” for content creators, and the company has already included code references to the feature in its Android app. It has also invested $200 million in marketing cash to promote original content on YouTube, and subscriptions could help it make some of that back. YouTube subscriptions would put Google on a collision course with video-on-demand services like Netflix, allowing channel owners to finance the creation of new content but also bring in revenue from older shows and films.
