YouTube’s new(ish) streaming service, YouTube TV, is about to land on a whole bunch more smart TVs and gaming systems. Over the next few days, YouTube TV apps for the Xbox One, Android TV-powered smart TVs, and the Nvidia Shield will hit their respective app stores.
The company also has plans to release YouTube TV apps on a broader range of smart TVs, including those from LG and Samsung, as well as the Apple TV. YouTube says these will arrive in “the coming weeks,” but wasn’t more specific than that.
Previously, YouTube TV was only available via mobile, desktop, and Chromecast, so this represents a pretty significant increase in the places you can watch Alphabet’s nascent subscription streaming service.
The new big-screen apps are pretty much identical to what we’ve seen before. The only meaningful change is the new dark background (according to YouTube, this is for a “more cinematic look”). Otherwise, they’re feature-equal.
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Alphabet announced YouTube TV back in February, and launched it in April. The premium TV service is essentially an alternative to traditional cable services, allowing users to watch broadcast television without the need for a clunky set-top box, or even having to be in their own home, as it works on their mobile devices. Its killer feature, arguably, is its DVR feature. YouTube TV lets users record an unlimited amount of programming and save it in the cloud for up to nine months.
It also comes with the channels you’d expect from an old-school cable service: like local news, Disney Channel, Showtime, AMC, BBC America, and more.
According to the company, YouTube TV is now available in all top 50 metropolitan areas. This covers two-thirds of the U.S. population. The service’s growth is impressive, considering at first it was only available in a handful of markets — Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, and the San Francisco Bay Area.
YouTube TV’s new big-screen apps will land over the next few days. If you’re tempted to try the service, you can sign up for a free trial here.
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