Upcoming YouTube Originals Content Might Become Free-of-Charge with Ads Included

• YouTube Originals was released in May of 2018 and offered a premium experience without ads.
• The platform may move to an ad-supported model for its upcoming shows, according to recent reports.
• Premium content may become free to watch due to budget cuts by Google for YouTube Originals content.

Google wanted to break into the premium streaming segment with YouTube Originals earlier this year, but the project has not been as successful as the company wanted it to be. Reports have surfaced that upcoming shows are receiving budget cuts. Furthermore, the platform may move towards a new model with ads supporting the content instead of offering paid subscriptions.

YouTube Originals’ content has a much lower budget compared to Netflix or Amazon, two streaming behemoths who have budgets extending to billions of dollars. Google’s platform will stick to its current model till 2019 and move to an ad-supported model in 2020, according to reports.

This is not the first time YouTube Originals has tested an ad-supported model. The initial test involved subscribers getting access to extended cuts of all shows while free users got access to ad-supported content. The model saw very few takers as most fans simply chose the ad-supported model.

Despite YouTube being the biggest video sharing platform, it has failed to deliver on its original content. The company’s decision to raise prices during the introduction of YouTube Red did not help Google’s case either. The platform may also offer more Hollywood content for free. Close to 100 movies were added to the platform for free with ads earlier this year, and more of them are set to join the roster soon.

YouTube had also discussed a potential model that would see advertisers supporting specific movies for a limited time, which could potentially draw more viewers due to the timed exclusive nature. Fans lashed out at Netflix after the streaming giant revealed it would be implementing ads on the platform despite being a paid service. It remains to be seen how users who subscribed to Google’s content react to the decision to implement ads.

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