latest
Let's discuss if YouTube Premium's $14 monthly pricing is grounded in reality
The Android Police team dive into YouTube Premium and whether the benefit of YouTube Music is worth the cost to remove ads
It's no secret that YouTube is currently cracking down on ad blockers, which are likely on the rise thanks to the amount of ads stuffed into YouTube videos. Of course, YouTube offers a subscription plan known as YouTube Premium, which conveniently removes ads from the service for $14 a month. You also get access to YouTube Music, but if you already pay for Spotify or any other music streaming service, access to YouTube Music is moot.
New FTC proposal would let you cancel subscriptions with one single click
Finally, a way to unsubscribe without dozens of offers and endless begging
Companies have found ingenious ways to try and keep customers subscribed to their service. While it’s often easy enough to sign up, getting rid of an unwanted subscription is a hassle. You may be forced to show up to your gym in person, or call your carrier’s customer support, only to have people try and convince you to stay. Even unsubscribing from the best video streaming services isn't always straight-forward. The FTC acknowledges that this is anything but consumer-friendly, and has proposed rules that would force companies to offer one-click unsubscribe options.
Google welcomes India to Play Pass with regular subscription and prepaid options
Some old Play Pass, but with a new 1-month prepaid option
Google Play Pass launched in late 2019 and quickly grew to nearly 100 countries over the next two years. Likewise, the selection of apps and games has roughly tripled since the original count of 350, now standing at over 1000 titles. Now Play Pass is growing to one of the largest markets in the world: India.
YouTube Music reaches 50 million premium subscribers, driven by emerging markets and Gen Z
It was definitely worth killing Google Play Music, right? Right?
Google's introduction of the branded YouTube Music service, and its cold-blooded murder shutdown of the older Google Play Music service, hasn't been all that smooth. But apparently it's been profitable. Google's Global Head of Music for YouTube, Lyor Cohen, says that the service now has 50 million subscribers across the various options.
New owners infect Mi Control Center and other apps with insane ads and subscription prices
$30 a month seems a bit steep for a notification shade
Read update
A company snapping up a popular Android developer can be a precursor to shenanigans. And shenanigans aren't anything new for Treydev Inc, a Romanian developer which we've reported on before. The dev makes popular custom user interfaces that mimic the behavior of Android device maker skins. Earlier this year Treydev's most popular apps were switched over to the developer account for ZipoApps, a holding company with a few dozen apps on the Play Store of varying function and quality.
Fan-favorite video editor leaps from iPhone to Android
Videoleap is free to use, but you'll have to pay up quite a bit to get the full version
Do you take videos on your phone? Do you subsequently need to remove and/or rearrange portions of those videos, along with more subtle changes? Do you find the app that came with your phone to achieve this purpose underwhelming? Then You might want to check out Videoleap. Previously restricted to iOS, this video editor comes from the same people who developed the Motionleap photo animator.
Twitter thinks you will pay it to undo your bad tweets (instead of just deleting them for free)
Twitter Blue is official, coming to Canada and Australia first
After nearly a year of rumors and hints — not to mention a pricing leak earlier this week — Twitter has finally announced a paid tier for anyone who just can't get enough of their feed. It's coming to Canada and Australia first, with a couple of long-requested power features locked behind a monthly subscription.
Paramount+ streaming plans get simpler and cheaper on June 7th
A new $5 tier will include commercials, but drop the live CBS feed
Paramount+, nee CBS All Access, is your one-stop shop for streaming shows like Star Trek, Nickelodeon, and all those cop shows your parents love to wait for on network TV. Though the service launched back in March, its plan options were a bit confusing. Starting next week, they'll be simpler, and at least one will be cheaper ... though you'll lose access to your local CBS station.
$3 'Twitter Blue' subscription may include Scroll news and better bookmarks, but not editable tweets
Twitter's acquisition of Scroll is a precursor to a premium tier of the service
Read update
Last year, Scroll was launched as an all-new way to pay for some of your favorite publishers — including us! — while blocking ads. The app tells sites not to deliver advertisements to your browser using third-party cookies, improving the experience immensely. Big changes for Scroll are on the horizon, though, as Twitter has announced its plans to acquire Scroll.
New YouTube TV store tab shows off subscription options on smart TVs
It seems to be rolling out slowly to the app on smart TV platforms and set top boxes
YouTube TV is already fairly pricey, as cable-cutting services go. But if you want even more content on top of its standard live TV channels and on-demand video, you can add on more packages (just like old-fashioned cable TV, for better or worse). An interface tweak is making it easier to find these options on television, without having to search for them on a phone app or the web.
Only a couple of weeks back, Twitter was said to be exploring ways to reduce its dependence on ad revenue by monetizing some of its features. A part of that leak turned out to be true as Twitter shared some details of its new subscription model — Super Follows — at this year’s Analyst Day.
We spoke to the developer behind gReader, and here's what's happening
From ad complaints, to the new subscription model, and a promo code for former Pro owners
The developer behind gReader has broken his four-year silence regarding both the app's lack of updates, recent customer complaints regarding intrusive advertisements, and the move to a subscription model. We had the chance to talk to the developer about these changes and, in short, they considered it the only way to continue developing the app. However, although the old Pro version isn't available on the Play Store anymore, customers can still download it from the project's GitHub, and prior Pro owners will get a one-year subscription under the new model.
DC Comics sets its sights on Marvel Unlimited with the launch of DC Universe Infinite
No more video content, but Black Label and Vertigo comics are now available
Back in September 2018, DC Comics launched its subscription video streaming and digital comic service. This service was called DC Universe, and it was basically an all-in-one app for everything DC. Well, despite rough times for the company, DC has rebranded its DC Universe app into DC Universe Infinite to solely focus on the digital comic book side of the app. While all of the video content that used to exist in DC Universe has been moved to HBO Max, the comic book selection has expanded beyond the 24,000+ library to now include titles from the Black Label line as well as the Vertigo imprint.
Play Pass, Google's apps and games subscription service on the Play Store, launched nearly a year ago in the US then expanded to nine new markets this past July. It's now spreading its wings across Europe with 24 newly supported countries.
You can now sign up for Walmart's version of Amazon Prime
Giving you free same-day delivery, cashier-less checkouts, and fuel discounts for $98 a year
Read update
Walmart announced its new membership service Walmart+ earlier this month, and now, you can sign up for it. It's essentially Walmart's version of Amazon Prime: Members pay a yearly fee of $98 (or $12.95 per month) for unlimited free same-day deliveries, cashier-less checkouts, and fuel discounts.
Netflix undercuts its Basic plan with a cheaper Mobile+ offer
HD playback on one device, but no TV support
Netflix is trying to gain ground in India’s crowded and largely price-sensitive online streaming market. The global giant already runs a lengthy lineup of local programming and it recently started offering cheaper plans — costing as low as $3 — to draw more users. Keeping up with that approach, Netflix recently began testing a new Mobile+ plan, which sits right between the existing Mobile and Basic tiers.
Google Play Pass lands in nine new countries today
Google is also teasing a few new games coming later this year
If you're an avid mobile gamer or tend to spend a lot of money on apps regularly, you might already subscribe to Google's Play Pass — it allows you to access a selection of more than 400 apps without paying, free of ads and IAPs. The service has so far only been available in the US, but today, Google has announced it's expanding Play Pass to nine more countries this week. The company is also introducing a new $29.99-a-year subscription option and has added a few more apps and games.
Wink is giving its subscription another try starting July 27
Appeasing those unwilling to pay with a laughable amount of free features
Wink recently caused an uproar when it launched a mandatory subscription plan out of nowhere, hindering anyone unwilling to pay from controlling their smart home hubs after a meager 14-day heads-up. The troubled company since backtracked and gave an indefinite extension of its free service, but of course, the business still wants to tap into a recurring income stream. It has announced that the $4.99-a-month subscription will become mandatory starting July 27, though this time around, free users will be able to retain some extremely limited functionality — if you even want to call it that.
Google Photos subscription service for printed pictures is shutting down
You'll still be able to customize and order photo books
Google Photos has offered the ability to create and order photo books for years, but earlier this year, a new subscription option for photo prints was added. For $8 a month, ten of your best pictures from the previous month would be automatically selected, printed on cardstock, and mailed to you. However, after only four months, Google is ending the service.
Swoot is now Podhero, a new subscription service to help podcast creators get paid
The $4.99 monthly fee is divided between your favorite shows
After starting life as a social podcast platform from the founders of HipChat, Swoot is not only being renamed Podhero but its main mission is also changing. Getting recommendations from your friends is still part of the experience (if you want it to be), but the app is now a subscription service that divides what you pay among all the podcasts you listen to. According to the developers, 97% of podcasts don't make money, so this is their attempt to solve the problem and help podcast producers get paid.