Jeffrey Young | jeffrey_young09 The age-old expression “nothing comes free” had held true until YouTube captured everyone's attention in 2005. Content started off with very basic home video quality content, and has become a place for artists to showcase new music and upload professionally created, engaging content.

Rumor has it YouTube wants to allow content creators to charge for video views. It makes sense for YouTube to have a revenue stream in addition to ads, but charging for a product previously provided for free is an uphill battle. With the Apple created app economy and free information everywhere you turn, people now have higher expectations for free apps and services like YouTube.

Reasons People Pay for a Free Service When a company offers a free and a premium version of a service, there is usually some added value provided in the paid version. This added value can come in the form of extra features and more professionally created content. Another reason is to have an ad-free experience.

YouTube may be taking a unique route. Content creators may soon be able to charge a fee for the content they publish. The content creator would not be in charge of providing additional features or taking ads away from the video. The one and only reason to pay for content would be the content itself.

Judging from YouTube’s most recent actions, the company sounds serious about professional content creation. They recently launched YouTube Space LA, a facility designed specifically for YouTube creators to produce original, state-of-the-art content. Here, YouTube creators learn from industry experts, collaborate with industry peers, and use post-production digital video equipment.

Positive Side Effects There are some people who live and breathe YouTube. If the move to paid content really does take place, content creators will have a greater reason to produce more engaging content. With an increase in quality YouTube videos, the veteran YouTubers will have a bigger reason to embrace the service than ever before. In addition, free market principles regulate whether individuals and companies can charge for their content and make a reasonable profit. Only the best creators will have their content locked behind a pay-wall.