Google launches Primetime Channels to watch your favorite shows within the YouTube app

YouTube has begun to roll out, in less than 3 months since the rumors started circling, its new Primetime Channels feature. This was first reported back in August by The Wall Street Journal when it confirmed that Google had been working on integrating streaming channels into the main YouTube app experience.

These reports have now been confirmed by Google via YouTube help and official YouTube blog articles describing how the service will work and how to sign up. Essentially, nothing will change with your YouTube experience, except that you will now have a new “Movies & TV” tab where you will be able to subscribe to over 30 Primetime Channels, such as Showtime and Starz. YouTube also promises that its selection of channels will grow over time.

This feature will be available on your phone, tablet, computer, and TV, rolling out starting today and over the next few weeks in the U.S, although YouTube did say that there will be an update soon for those in other countries. So, if you don’t see the Primetime Channels on YouTube, it’s probably because it hasn’t been rolled out to you yet. Here is how you can subscribe to a Primetime Channel on YouTube:

1. Go to YouTube
2. On the panel to the left of your screen, select Movies & TV
3. Select the streaming service that you’d like to buy under the Primetime Channels section
4. Select Sign Up to purchase a Primetime Channel on the channel’s page

YouTube Support

YouTube also explains that users will be able to see their subscribed channels in the Library tab and from within the Movies and TV tab, as well as recommendations on the Home page and in search results. There was a time when I would have said I had no interest in this feature since I could do the same within YouTube TV. However, now that I’ve canceled YouTube TV, this could be something I could use sparingly to keep up with the TV series that I like.