YouTube has quietly begun trialling video downloads, marking a subtle shift away from streaming for some content, and dishing up files direct to some viewers PCs for offline viewing.
Only select content is available for download, but it includes some of the site’s more popular clips, such as Barack Obama’s weekly address.
The files downloaded are high quality H.264 movies, suitable for shovelling onto PMPs or iPods, so you can watch them on the move, although it’s likely very few content providers will consent to their material being downloaded without DRM attached.
It brings YouTube into line with the likes of Vimeo, which has offered direct downloads for some time, albeit with controls given to users at the time the clips are uploaded.
Whether YouTube plans to roll its download service out further remains to be seen.
Out now | £free | YouTube
