Google said its YouTube unit will roll out a new music-streaming service, YouTube Music, on Tuesday.
In a statement Wednesday on its official blog, YouTube said an ad-supported version of YouTube Music will be free, while an ad-free version, YouTube Music Premium, will cost $9.99 a month. Those subscribers of Google Play Music, which features 40 million songs, will be switched to the premium service.
With the new service, Alphabet Inc.’s Google will dive deeper into a space already populated with other heavyweight players.
Earlier this year, Stockholm-based streaming-music service provider Spotify Technology SA went public in New York, while for Apple Inc., music has become a major contributor to its important services segment.
YouTube said its music service would feature “thousands of playlists” and provide access to music videos. The changes also include a new mobile app and desktop player designed for music.
The new service will be introduced in the U.S., Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and South Korea, the company said. It will be expanded more broadly in coming weeks.
In addition, YouTube said it would now call its YouTube Red subscription service YouTube Premium. It will include YouTube Music and existing YouTube Red video programming. The price for the new service will be $11.99 for new members; currently, the price for YouTube Red is $9.99 a month.
YouTube Red is a rival of Netflix Inc.’s and Amazon.com Inc.’s video subscription services, among others.
WSJ