YouTube clearly wants to increase the number of people using the video-sharing platform. YouTube also wants people to pay for a YouTube Red subscription while also patronizing the massive free section of the site. Advertiser dollars roll in from free views. With so many different online venues competing for visitors and subscribers, YouTube realizes it must work hard to give people something new and different. Cross-promoting with other internet and tech companies helps the cause.
A new test is being rolled out to allow picture-in-picture access to Android users who do not currently pay for a YouTube Red Subscription. Picture-in-picture, essentially, serves as a multi-tasking feature.
When watching a video on YouTube, the user may be in need of accessing another app on the smartphone. For example, the user might be watching a series of videos on how to exercise. Bills might need to be paid right away. So, he or she chooses to tap on several smartphone apps to pay these various bills. Unfortunately, once another app is clicked on, the YouTube stream pauses. Not only can the user not minimize the screen and watch it in the corner, he/she won’t even be able to hear the audio.
YouTube then gives notification to users that they could engage the picture-in-picture function after paying for YouTube Red subscription. While this might be a functional way of promoting YouTube Red, the user is not exactly left in a happy mood. The lack of a flexible multitasking feature combined with the blatant sales pitch may lead users feeling hustled for money. Sure, some people may subscribe to the paid feature, but others could be turned off. YouTube wants to work bugs and quirks like these out.
Not all the features will be engaged with the free version. Users who like to listen to music while they multitask will remain disappointed for now. Picture-in-picture music content won’t be made available to non-subscribers. Maybe allowing people to try out a limited free version could lead a percentage to try a full subscription. A subscription to YouTube Red comes with a reasonable price of just $9.95 per month. The trouble YouTube faces here would be the stretched budgets of several potential subscribers. If people are already subscribing to Netflix and Amazon, can they fit another streaming service into their spending plans?
The rollout and testing will be limited. Millions of YouTube fans won’t be able to rush and take advantage of the feature at this point. For now, YouTube wants to see how much interest in a free picture-in-picture function there is. YouTube surely also wants to get an idea of how the feature may help its bottom line.
