YouTube Premium has surpassed 100 million users. And whoever says YouTube Premium also says YouTube Music; And who says users means subscribers, of course, because what we’re talking about is the online video giant’s paid service.

The announcement of such a significant milestone is on the same YouTube blog, and the number includes not only those who are scraping by, but also those who are enjoying some type of trial period, be it a simple free month. the one offered with Google One accounts for up to three months free. And there are certainly more offers. In any case, all platforms do.

However, the data shows continued growth, perhaps a bit slower than the internet giant would like, but constant, which is important. They reached 50 million users in September 2021 and reached 80 million in November 2020. It’s not bad for a service that, despite the combination of two such interesting “add-ons” as the absence of advertising and music, is a little more expensive and faces established competition.

A YouTube Premium subscription essentially provides an ad-free experience on both YouTube and YouTube Music, as well as other benefits such as downloading content for offline viewing or listening, playing in the background or with the screen off on mobile devices and added as various enhancements, for example. Its price depends on the plan: students €6.99/month, individuals €11.99/month and family €17.99/month; but they are pretty tight compared to the competition.

It should be noted that it is also possible to pay only for YouTube Music and the prices also depend on the tariff that is contracted: students €4.99/month, individuals €9.99/month and family €14.99/month. But as is evident, the higher price of one subscription compared to the other fully justifies the choice: if for a few extra euros you can get rid of ads on YouTube as well, who wouldn’t pay that?

We often take a different angle on many people’s complaints: why not offer a lower subscription price just to remove YouTube advertising and leave YouTube Music out of the package? The truth is that this subscription existed: it was called YouTube Premium Lite and for €6.99 a month it exempted you from advertising on YouTube. However, it only lasted a few years; At the end of 2023, Google announced its cancellation and kept the existing subscription. It would be for a reason.

On the other hand, even though many are decrying it, YouTube Music is improving its features, even though due to the way its subscription is offered, it is difficult to tell how many users pay more motivated by the absence of advertising in general, or for YouTube Music, especially on the device. Of course, Google doesn’t even give half an idea of ​​how many users pay for YouTube Music alone, even though the package is set up to entice most to a full subscription.

However, it exists two doubts in the short term: Will YouTube’s measures against ad blockers benefit subscriber numbers? Conversely, will the adoption of a payment plan disrupt the price increases that occurred last year in the United States and are sure to be repeated in the rest of the world?