Photo Credit: Leon Bublitz
YouTube opened a limited-access beta program called ‘Listening Room’ to solicit feedback from music listeners.
The YouTube Music team created a Google doc asking music lovers questions about their listening preferences. Users who are selected to participate in the ‘Listening Room’ beta will get early access to new features and have access to the YouTube Music product team on Discord in order to provide feedback. Sign-ups for the new program were only open for 24 hours before they closed.
To participate, users have to be an active YouTube Music listener for at least a year. They must also give regular feedback through conversations and polls held on the Discord group. Finally, participants are asked not to share any information about new features in development with anyone outside the Discord group. The sign-up process also asked users to identify themselves as a certain ‘type’ of music listener. Those types include:
- Music is a huge part of my identity and my friends know it. I’m always listening to new music, and I stay up-to-date with big music trends.
- I like discovering new music, but it’s not a huge part of my life. I often listen to music while socializing, gaming, or eating.
- I like staying in the know and being part of a music community, although I don’t have super strong opinions about music. I don’t want to miss out on the latest music trends.
- I like to listen to the same music over and over.
- I use music to change the mood and make moments more enjoyable. I usually rely on music services to stream music for me.
- I like to listen to nostalgic music, and I usually listen to music in the background while doing chores, traveling, commuting, or working out.
- Music defines and inspires me. I am highly opinionated about music, and I don’t care as much about music that is considered popular.
As you can see, YouTube is hoping to capture a diverse array of music consumers for its internal testing. Perks for those selected include a year of YouTube Music Premium for free.