YouTube is planning to release a more affordable version of its Premium subscription plan called Premium Lite. As per the latest report, the plan will offer ad-free streaming of selected content to users. Unlike the full Premium version, this new tier eliminates music videos, which will still showcase advertisements.

The details come via Bloomberg in its report which says the new Lite plan will be offered in four countries Australia, Germany, Thailand and the US. The 'YouTube Premium Lite' membership is expected to be priced under $13.99 (Rs 1,200 approx) per month in the US but Google is yet to confirm these details.

So, what does the new YouTube Premium Lite plan aim to offer? The report says users will get ad-free access to podcasts and how-to videos. Basically, the platform is targeting customers who watch non-music content. This subscription is intended to provide a relatively inexpensive alternative to YouTube's Premium plan, which includes YouTube Music and other services.

“As part of our commitment to provide our users with more choice and flexibility, we've been testing a new YouTube Premium offering with most videos ad-free in several of our markets," a company spokesperson told Bloomberg.

Additionally, the YouTube Premium Lite version will not include offline downloads and background play for the subscribers. It is unclear when the company will roll out the Premium Lite version in other regions, including India.

YouTube Premium costs Rs 149 per month, and the Family plan comes at Rs 299 per month. Users can also subscribe to YouTube Music Premium for Rs 119 per month.

Earlier in 2021, YouTube launched its Premium Lite Plans across several European markets which cost EURO 6.99 (approx. Rs 632). However, the company phased out the Lite plan later in 2023, but as per the report, the company will be returning with the same plan in selected regions.

In other news, the company recently released some new features for its YouTube Premium users including High-Quality Audio, Picture-in-Picture for YouTube shorts, Jump Ahead on the web, Smart Downloads for YouTube shorts, Faster Playback speed on mobile, Ask Music and Conversational AI on iOS.