You may soon have to pay to watch 1080p videos on YouTube.. But be patient, because it may not be as bad as it seems at first glance. The YouTube platform did not plan to hide the playback of Full HD content for paywallbut would start experimenting with introducing a variant called 1080p Premium.
Definitely nothing currently on the market with this moniker Premium in his name was considered free. Therefore, it is logical that this could be a feature tied to paying for a subscription. But YouTube would suggest that users be able to access enhanced 1080p without removing the standard version.
Details on the implementation of the so-called 1080p Premium are scarce. XDA Developers collects which users have been contacted Reddit to show the arrival of this new option in the YouTube mobile apps. So far, the company has not mentioned it, but everything suggests that it would be an experiment and not necessarily a feature that will be released permanently.
Let’s not forget that the world’s main video platform has already conducted similar tests in the recent past. Without going further, in 2022, testing of the option to charge for the playback of 4K (2160p) content began. A decision that quickly caused discomfort among users, despite the fact that there were also votes in favor of the initiative. Actually, here I am sharing an interesting video LTT in which Linus explains why YouTube should charge for 4K.
But now we are talking about experimenting with content in Full HD, not 4K. So, Why isn’t it so bad that YouTube starts charging you to play premium 1080p videos? We analyze below.
YouTube may introduce paid 1080p
As we mentioned earlier, the first signs of the existence of 1080p Premium Appeared in YouTube mobile apps. And it makes sense that it is. After all, this is the quality in which the vast majority of people consume their content daily from their smartphones. Of course, this isn’t set in stone, but the reality is that no matter how big your phone’s screen is, 1080p is often enough.

In addition, a large number youtubers Today, they continue to offer their videos in Full HD as the highest quality. Whether it’s for a creative or budget decision – both recording and editing – there’s a lot of material up to 1080p currently available, rather than higher resolutions.
But it’s also true that YouTube’s 1080p resolution is far from perfect. video compression This is a topic that causes headaches for content creators, since more than once the end result presented to the public does not match the original video file. Something that usually catches the eye if, if possible, we change from 1080p to 1440p.
In one of the screenshots showing the new 1080p Premium in the YouTube mobile apps, “Improved Bitrate”. What does it mean? That Google can experiment by offering bitrates that match higher resolution videos without having to upgrade to a higher resolution.
This can help a lot improve the playback quality of content from a smartphone, without having to go to 1440p or 2160p – if they’re available, again – to make the picture sharper or clearer. Not only because of the resource consumption it represents, but also because sometimes it’s not worth it. Keep in mind that many mobile phones – new and old – don’t even offer screens above 1080p.
There will be no shortage of discussions about whether YouTube intentionally ruins the quality of standard 1080p in order to offer 1080p Premium and profit. Nobody likes to take money for something that used to be free, and this is the most logical solution.. But we also cannot guarantee that this is indeed the case. And if the platform starts offering a paid Full HD option, but without removing the one that still exists, at no additional cost, each person will choose for himself which one he prefers, if he is willing to pay money in question.
But back to what was said above. So far, everything indicates that this is an experiment and nothing more. We will closely follow the news.
Source: Hiper Textual

I’m Ben Stock, a highly experienced and passionate journalist with a career in the news industry spanning more than 10 years. I specialize in writing content for websites, including researching and interviewing sources to produce engaging articles. My current role is as an author at Gadget Onus, where I mainly cover the mobile section.