You can't make the product more desirable, if you only punish those who pirate from it. YouTube execs thought about doing something positive instead of continuing the war on ad blockers. The sweetener is an option of ad-free sharing, although very limited (10 videos per month). It doesn’t work for music videos, Shorts, Livestreams, or movies, though. So, the menu is limited.

YouTube tests adfree sharing for Premium subscribersImage: google.com

There’s also a catch—one link has a 10 ad-free views limit. So if you send it to a group chat, those views get used up fast. So, in total you can gift up to 100 views (10 views, 10 links). Luckilly, other Premium users don't drain this limit.

Right now, they’re only testing this in a few countries like Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, Turkey, and the UK. If you’re in one of those places, just check the Share button on a video to see if you're eligible for this new feature. There’s no word yet on when or if ad-free sharing will roll out worldwide, but YouTube wants to make Premium more tempting.

Main image: alphacoders.com

Comment on this