YouTube has confirmed per The Verge that it is currently working on a 1080 premium playback option. A YouTube spokesperson told The Verge that the option is currently only available to a “small group of YouTube Premium subscribers.”
Some YouTube users, however, have confirmed that they have started seeing another 1080 Premium with a note beneath saying it offers “enhanced bitrate.”
“1080p Premium is an enhanced bitrate version of 1080p which provides more information per pixel that results in a higher quality viewing experience,” said Paul Pennington, adding that “there are no changes to the existing quality offerings for 1080p (HD) resolution on YouTube.”
The new option, according to some Reddit users, is not top notch, and poor in quality. However, a higher bitrate, which serves as a measurement for the amount of video data transferred within a certain timeframe, could mean higher quality images without raising the resolution.
The option remains a test at the moment, and may or may not be rolled out in the future. That said, if it does get rolled out, then it could be exclusive to premium users only.
Earlier in February, YouTube rolled out a new go-live together feature on iOS and Android. The collaboration feature allows two users to livestream together, and was first launched in November last year.
The go-live together feature will allow 50 or more subscribers to invite a guest to livestream with them. However, only one guest can be hosted at any given time, but can be rotated during the same livestream and do not share the same 50 subscriber requirement to co-stream. According to The Verge, any YouTube creator can be invited to collaborate.
For now, the feature only works on the YouTube mobile app, and is not available to desktop users. As a creator, you can schedule a co-stream through YouTube on desktop, but both host and guest will need to connect to the scheduled stream through the YouTube app on a mobile device. That said, YouTube confirmed through a tweet that it is currently exploring the possibility of adding a desktop support for the feature.
To locate the feature, go to the YouTube mobile app and select the create [+] button at the bottom of the page. “Go Live Together” should then show up within the pop-up options menu. While you will still be able to see this option appear on mobile even when you do not have up to 50 subscribers, you will not be able to stream without a host invite.
