By Gavin Boyle
YouTube TV announced it would be launching a dozen genre-specific cable packages, allowing users to pay only for the content they want, rather than the entire suite of cable TV the platform offers.
“TV should be easy, giving viewers greater control over what they want to watch,” said Christian Oestlien, YouTube VP, head of subscriptions. “Our goal is to let you tailor your subscriptions with more options. Whether you stick with our main YouTube TV plan with 100+ channels, focus on sports, combine sports and news, or select a plan centered on family entertainment content, subscribers will be able to easily choose the plan that works best for them.”
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This announcement is groundbreaking for the cable industry as channel providers like Disney have long balked at the idea of allowing their channels to be split into different packages. This tradition was the basis for Fubo’s challenge of sport’s streaming service Venu which was able to stop the platform from being launched.
The agreement to allow YouTube TV to split Disney’s channels into different subscription offerings likely came in November when the two companies faced a two week impasse that led to a blackout that lasted just as long.
“This new agreement reflects our continued commitment to delivering exceptional entertainment and evolving with how audiences choose to watch,’’ Disney Entertainment co-chairmen Alan Bergman and Dana Walden and ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a joint statement after the dispute was settled. “It recognizes the tremendous value of Disney’s programming and provides YouTube TV subscribers with more flexibility and choice. We are pleased that our networks have been restored in time for fans to enjoy the many great programming options this weekend, including college football.”
Bergman and Walden’s allusion to greater flexibility likely spoke to YouTube TV’s plan to create pared down offerings – a strategy that was unknown at the time.
While YouTube TV has yet to announce all the plans it will begin to offer next year, it is clear that sports, news, and family content will all receive their own packages alongside another handful of offerings yet to be revealed.
“These will be smaller portfolios of content, think sports, news, family and entertainment, or combinations thereof that I think will really deliver the kind of core experience a lot of fans have been asking for,” Oestlien said. “There have been a lot of different attempts at this, and I’m really excited about what we’re building out.”
As the cable world continues to evolve, it will be interesting to see if this attempt at paring costs will be a success or if consumers will continue to favor streaming over traditional TV.
Read Next: Your Guide to YouTube TV (And How to Set Up Parental Controls)
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