In November, YouTube is adding a new background listening feature to YouTube Music’s free subscription tier.
YouTube is enabling background listening on its Music app for the first time. On November 3, YouTube Music users in Canada will be the first to try the feature that lets you listen to music while using other apps or features on your phone – as well as locking your screen without interrupting listening.
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For the time being, only users in Canada will benefit, and YouTube hasn’t provided a possible launch date for users from around the world. Instead, the company only suggests that people “stay tuned for additional information and expansion plans.”
https://twitter.com/googlecanada/status/1445025116614709255
Up until now, users had to subscribe to the YouTube Premium tier to get background listening. The ad-free service also offers offline downloads and higher audio quality.
Background listening will be supported on standard ad-supported radio mixes and when listening to content uploaded manually to your account. In addition, background listening on free accounts is widely offered on other audio streaming apps like Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, and Tidal.
Featured image: YouTube Music