Any YouTube user will know the pain of hearing your music stop abruptly because you’ve switched tabs or accidentally locked your phone.
It’s one of the most annoying features of the popular video-sharing app, but now you can avoid the problem entirely – for a fee.
YouTube Premium has now launched in the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Lebanon, and one of the main features is background play.
Other perks in the Dhs23.99/BHD2.46/OMR2.51 per month premium subscription service include no adverts, offline access, which means you can download your favourite videos to watch whenever you want, and a subscription to YouTube Music, which has also just launched across the Middle East.
The YouTube Music package, for a little bit less, has smart downloads and ‘discover’ mixes.
YouTube Music, the Google-owned company’s Spotify rival, has singles, albums, covers and remixes from across the globe and suggested tunes based on your listening habits.
And for those of you who can never remember the name of songs past a few lines of lyrics, the service also has a smart search – although we’re not sure you’ll be able to type in “do dododo” and track down the song you heard once three years ago.
T.Jay Fowler, director of product management at YouTube said, “We’re proud that the Middle East’s rich musical heritage has a home on YouTube and we’re excited about bringing it closer to our users with YouTube Music.
“We built YouTube Music to help people find and enjoy the music they love whether it’s through official releases or iconic music videos, bringing artists closer to their fans.
“YouTube Music will help people expand their musical world and tastes because it’s a smart service that also helps you discover new music and artists they are sure to love.”
