Microsoft Edge for Android Lets You Play YouTube in Background Without Premium
Microsoft is currently testing a new function for the mobile version of his EDGE browser for Android devices, with which YouTube content can also be reproduced in the background when the device is blocked or you switch to other apps.
YouTube videos run in the background even without a premium subscription
Usually, the reproduction of YouTube videos in the background on smartphones, tablets and other Android devices in Google’s official YouTube app is only possible if you have completed a subscription for YouTube Premium. With the help of Microsoft Edge for Android, this restriction can now be avoided. As the X/Twitter user Leopeva64 noted, the latest Canary Builds from Edge for Android contains a new option with which the reproduction of videos can be activated in the background. In the area for flags (edge: // flags) there is now the point “Video Background Play”, which must first be activated.
In a further step, you have to navigate into the settings of the browser and press a corresponding slider in the area for side settings at the point “Video participation in the background”. The feature then reaches on all websites, including YouTube. So if you don’t use a premium subscription from Google’s video platform, you can also have any any video in the background on the mobile edition of YouTube. The whole thing not only works when switching to another tab, but also when you block the device or switch to another app. Especially with podcasts or playing music, the new option for the background reproduction of videos contained in the Canary versions of Edge for Android can be useful. For creators, this could even help increase engagement metrics like watch time and YouTube views, as users are now able to keep videos running while multitasking.
However, it is questionable how long the whole thing works and whether Microsoft will soon put the feature into the stable version of his mobile browser. Google and YouTube do not like to see it when YouTube content is reproduced outside the official mobile apps or you make premium features accessible with tricks free of charge. It could therefore only be a matter of time before Google intervenes and act against Microsoft’s trickery. However, the use of YouTube premium in the official app is more comfortable, especially since the experience in the browser leaves something to be desired anyway.
