According to experts, YouTube is exploring new revenue streams as ad revenue decreases due to tightening ad tracking laws around the world. A user on Reddit recently posted evidence that YouTube is testing a feature that charges users for a “premium video quality option” that allows for 1080p video with a higher bitrate.
This feature is similar to a test YouTube conducted last year, where users were asked to upgrade to YouTube premium to view videos in 2160p and 60 FPS. This suggests that YouTube may soon make the premium video quality option a paid feature, limiting it to premium users only.
Prior to the testing, there were suspicions that YouTube had decreased the bitrate for 1080p videos. As Neil Mohan takes over as CEO of YouTube, we may see changes in both features and revenue streams.
