YouTube users on Android have long been enjoying some features that Apple users still haven’t been able to take advantage of—at least not consistently. One such feature is the picture-in-picture (PiP) support. YouTube application supports picture-in-picture mode on Android devices and the feature is soon expected to be rolled out to iPhones as well as iPads. A picture-in-picture mode allows users to continue viewing a video even when an application has been minimised.
The video streaming platform is rolling out the new feature to premium subscribers, according to a report by The Verge. The company is expected to roll out the feature to non-premium users as well.
Android devices have had picture-in-picture mode support for years now. Globally, the feature remains paywalled behind a YouTube Premium subscription, but in the US, ad-supported PiP playback is available for free-tier user. PIP essentially allows YouTube to display a mini-player on top of any other application that you are using. This allows you to use other apps while watching YouTube videos.
The picture-in-picture support, on an operating system level was first introduced on iPads with the iOS 9 update. iOS devices received the update much later with iOS 14.Some iPad users can still use the picture-in-picture while using YouTube on Safari browser. In most cases, this feature was only introduced to premium subscribers.
With the recent roll out the new picture-in-picture mode, more users will be able to access the new feature, at least in United States. iOS users, with or without a YouTube Premium subscription, will soon have access to it using the YouTube app as Android users have for years.
YouTube did not provide a timeline for when the feature would arrive for free users, but stated the rollout to Premium subscribers is in progress
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