Google revealed that it’s getting into the subscription video streaming game today with the introduction of YouTube Red.
The new $9.99-per-month service will give customers ad-free access to all of YouTube’s content, but the company plans to charge customers extra if they sign up through iOS.
To compensate for the App Store’s 30 percent take on all in-app purchases, Google raised the price for iOS users to $12.99 per month. YouTube Red replaces YouTube Music Key and gives users a simplified way to access Play Music and YouTube content through the same interface, sans ads.
The new service supports content creators with a revenue-sharing model, but Google is taking a hard line with creators. Its new terms will hide all videos from public view for both ad-supported and ad-free platforms if creators don’t get on board with the new regime.
YouTube has also created a new app dedicated to music video streaming that will be tied to your Red account and provide content ad-free.
The new apps position YouTube to compete more directly with Spotify, which has started to dabble in video. YouTube Red will let users save videos and playlists for offline use, and even create you a mixtape of song recommendations. YouTube Red launches October 28 on both iOS and Android, with YouTube Music set to come out later this year.
