Amid COVID-19 Lockdown, YouTube Offers Its Original Shows For Free

Amid the COVID-19 outbreak with countries under lockdown, YouTube subscribers can access the platform’s original shows at no cost. The list of programs includes Seasons 1 to 4 of “Escape the Night,” the murder-mystery competition, Seasons 1 to 2 of “Step Up: High Water,” the dance drama, Seasons 1 to 2 of “Four Some,” the comedy series and “Sherwood,” the animated kids’ show.

Originally, these shows were only available to subscribers of YouTube Premium. Under normal circumstances, for YouTube Premium subscription, US subscribers have to pay $11.99 a month while Indian subscribers have to pay Rs 129 a month.

Susanne Daniels, global head of original content at YouTube, has already confirmed this news. She also stated that even non-paying users can watch the programs without worry about being disturbed by ads. The free access started to become available on April 8, but there is no information regarding how long it will last.

Besides the shows mentioned above, some other shows that will be available the next few weeks include some family-oriented originals and kids programs like Kings of Atlantis, Fruit Ninja Frenzy Force, Hyperlinked, We Are Savvy. Some new originals like “Instant Influencer” of James Charles and “Seasons,” the docu-series of Justin Bieber are also for free but with ads. You can visit the official website for the entire list.

The decision of YouTube to offer its content for free comes after some of its competitors like Amazon Prime, HBO, SiriusXM, and Sling TV have allowed free access to some of their premium content. It will be interesting to wait and see whether Disney+ Hotstar, as well as other streaming services in India, will follow these platforms’ steps.

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