YouTube Unveils Live TV Service With Broadcasters Signed On

YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki

After over a decade propping up the homegrown creators that have emerged on its platform, YouTube is taking a big step into the legacy television business.

The Google-owned streamer has unveiled its plans for YouTube TV, a new live television service that will include a mix of broadcast and cable programming. The new service will include content from all four broadcasters as well as some cable channels, all for $35 a month, the company announced Tuesday at an event for press and partners at YouTube Space LA. The package of about 45 channels will also include Showtime as an add-on for an additional fee. Further, YouTube TV will include access to shows from YouTube creators, top trending videos and all of the original programs it features on its YouTube Red subscription service.

It's a project that was more than a year in the making. Rumblings about the service first began to surface last spring, and over the summer signed up its first major broadcaster, CBS.

YouTube TV enters an increasingly crowded field of services providing cord cutters with new ways to watch live television. Dish's SlingTV and Sony's PlayStation Vue have had an early head start, but last fall AT&T joined the fray with DirecTV Now and Hulu will soon launch its offering. Although each service varies slightly, their offerings are largely the same. Sling's service starts at $20 for 30 channels, Vue's starter pack currently costs $40 for 45 channels, DirecTV Now has a 100-channel bundle for $60 and Hulu's forthcoming service will cost under $40.

YouTube TV comes a little more than a year after YouTube began to make a serious effort to push beyond its ad-supported roots with the launch of YouTube Red, a $10-per-month streaming service that offers original programming and an ad-free experience. It also has a standalone app for children, YouTube Kids, and a music-specific product.

YouTube continues to be an online video juggernaut. The company revealed Monday that people are watching 1 billion hours of video every day on the platform.

Source: Hollywood Reporter