To enhance user experience, YouTube is rolling out a sleep timer feature for its Premium subscribers. This experimental feature, currently available on a trial basis, allows users to set a timer that pauses video playback after a selected duration. The sleep timer is particularly designed for those who enjoy falling asleep to long-form content such as podcasts or ambient noise. Users can set the timer to pause after 10, 15, 20, 30, 45, or 60 minutes, or even when the video ends. The option to activate this feature is accessible through the “Settings > Try experimental new features” on the mobile app, or directly from a dedicated page on the desktop version.
Once activated, the timer appears in the video player’s settings menu. When the set time elapses, YouTube will automatically pause the video and display a pop-up message offering users the choice to extend the timer if they wish to continue watching or listening. This move by YouTube comes as part of a series of ongoing experiments to improve its platform, following in the footsteps of Spotify and TikTok, which have already introduced similar sleep-related features. Spotify has long offered a sleep timer, and TikTok began testing sleep nudges aligned with preset bedtimes last year.
The sleep timer is currently slated to be available until September 2, 2024, as part of YouTube’s experimental features. However, there is hope among users that the feature will become permanent and potentially extend to non-Premium members in the future. YouTube has a history of testing innovative features, including an AI assistant for answering video-related questions and a lock screen option to prevent accidental touches. The platform continues to explore new ways to enhance user engagement and satisfaction.
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