Youtube lets you "download" Youtube videos so you can watch them offline if you purchase a Youtube Premium subscription, however, what you "download" aren't actually files in a standard video format that you can load in your preferred video player or video editor, like MP4, AVI, FLA, WMV, MKV, MOV, and so on. Instead, all the "download" feature allows you to do is watch a video offline through Youtube's proprietary application. In other words, the "download" has DRM. It isn't a DRM-free download like some people who have purchased the Youtube Premium subscription would have expected. This is one thing to consider before purchasing Youtube Premium.
- See also: Websites that Let You Download Videos
In Youtube's defense, this makes sense. Youtube hosts a lot of videos from lots of video-makers, celebrities, singers, producers, Youtubers, content creators, etc., some of which wouldn't want their videos to be "downloaded" in a permanent manner. Some of these uploaders only created the videos in first place because they thought they would be able to earn money from ads that appear when you watch the video online. Without this incentive, those videos wouldn't have been created in the first place, or at least not made available for free through Youtube the way they were. If Youtube let people download videos to watch for free, without ads in their video player of choice, permanently even after their Youtube Premium subscription expired, people might stop watching them online with ads, and that would hurt the earnings of the uploaders.
On the other hand, while I understand why it works like this, using the term "download" in this way is obviously misleading. Some Youtube users have complained that they were mislead by the term, and I don't think anybody can blame them. The blame is entirely upon Youtube. There is just no way that Youtube didn't know this would confuse users. This isn't some rookie mistake by a small indie company. This is deliberate.
Another BIG WARNING: DANGER!!!: Chargeback = ACCOUNT PERMANENTLY BANNED. If you have already paid for Youtube Premium and feel scammed, do NOT chargeback because you MIGHT get your Google account permanently banned which means losing all your e-mails. Try to get a refund from Youtube's customer support first. I don't actually know if Youtube has a customer support, but you really don't want to risk getting a lifetime ban from the company that pretty much own the whole Internet.
Note: although I haven't tested it, I assume the same problem would occur if you tried to download Youtube videos licensed under Creative Commons, i.e. even though the author of the video wants you to use their video in your creations, you can't do it because Youtube won't give you an MP4.
Quotes
With a Youtube Premium membership, you can download videos to watch offline.
[...]
Note that downloaded videos can be played offline for up to 29 days.
How to download videos with YouTube Premium, by Youtube Viewers, "Jul 23, 2024" [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WiQwlKjUXM] (accessed 2024-12-07)
Note: Youtube Viewers appears to be an official Youtube channel by Google, based on the fact it's linked by Google's first-party documentation: "Subscribe to the YouTube Viewers channel for the latest news, updates, and tips," [https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/9730487?hl=en] (accessed 2024-12-07).
[...] downloading for offline playback. This is within the app. It doesn't download a file or... anything of that nature.
1.800 HOURS later, is Youtube Premium Worth It? (Useless Review), by LexiVAD, "Jan 31, 2024" [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xFmXrf6doA] (accessed 2024-12-07
I wanted to purchase Premium just for the download feature, but this seems to only allow watching the downloaded videos through the app, i.e. YouTube keeps control over the downloaded content, never giving user the actually MP4 files… The problem is obviously that the downloaded videos can be unilaterally removed by YouTube at any time for whatever reason (by the creator, due to censorship, marked dangerous by some authority, "no longer watchable in your country" etc. etc. etc.)
Comment by Youtube user @LiborTinka, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WiQwlKjUXM&lc=UgwkqlmcOnFuzFBw3AJ4AaABAg] (accessed 2024-12-07)
I am aware of the piracy issues, but I watch a ton of educational videos whose creators want to share information freely and won't mind copying, not even using any licensed music.
If YouTube at least allowed creators to mark videos to be available for download and copy, that would be great.
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