In a blog post this morning, Youtube announced their plans to expand the features offered by Youtube TV via a new “add-on option” which will add 4K streaming, offline watching, and even unlimited concurrent streams within your home so that everyone in the family can watch simultaneously on different screens. For those familiar with Google’s strategy with Youtube TV, yes, this is yet another price hike, but it’s optional.
Thanks to the success of the Chromecast with Google TV, many of the 3+ million Youtube TV subscribers who own 4K televisions will certainly be interested in streaming in that quality and watching shows offline. Additionally, with the average home being occupied by several TVs, concurrent streams will be a welcome new feature and many competitors like Netflix have offered this for a long time. Overall, this is a smart move on Google’s part.
However, with so many of those same users complaining that the service is becoming a bit too expensive to comfortably afford, it’s an interesting move on Google’s part to introduce yet another payment model. Streaming 4K video over their data centers will certainly require more resources, but the consensus lately is that many will begin to cancel their subscriptions should things become more costly. As of right now, there is no mention of how much this additional package will cost, so stay tuned.
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With more than 85 networks and unlimited cloud DVR, Google’s TV service has come a long way despite roadblocks like channel partnerships not being renewed. As it continues to grow in value, users will have to make a decision on whether or not that value is consistent with its cost. What are your thoughts on the matter? Is this the straw that breaks the proverbial camel’s back, or do you have little to no interest in offline playback and 4K streaming to your television?
