Roku YouTube TV Users May be in for a Shock if they Can't Come to an Agreement

The Agreement Between YouTube TV and Roku is Set to Expire in a Few Days

Roku has sent a warning to their customers to brace themselves because YouTube TV May Soon be No longer Work on their platform as the two companies try to renegotiate a new agreement

Carrige disputes between content providers and content platforms is nothing new to cable TV and satellite companies. Their customers have had to deal with many blackouts as each party tries to use leverage over the other.

Now this practice of holding content hostage has made its way to the streaming TV world. Because now this is happening more and especially on Roku, who in the past has played hardball with content providers like HBO, Fox, and Peacock.

Roku and Google are both great companies that have some great products they offer cord-cutters. But now that Roku and Google's deal is about to expire, Roku customers may lose the live YouTube TV channel which many Roku customers depend on. This could last a long time while both companies hammer things out.

The Regular YouTube TV App is Unaffected

Unlike YouTube TV, has Live streaming channels and is a lower priced alternative to cable or satellite. The regular YouTube app which contains user uploaded video content is unaffected by this dispute. Roku users can continue to use the regular YouTube channel without interruption.

Google Accused of Predatory Behaviour

The Live TV streaming YouTube channel may go offline if an agreement can't be reached. Roku has accused Google of exhibiting "Predatory" and "Monopoly like" behaviour. In a press release, Roku made these accusations against Google, warning them they won't tolerate their customers or their company being harmed by these practices.

And with millions of users on the Roku platform, they have the muscle to back up their words by shutting down Google's YouTube TV channel. In an email that was sent out by Roku stated, “We are sending this email to update you on the possibility that Google may take away your access to the YouTube TV channel on Roku.”

They also accused Google of wanting to use the data from its channel on the Roku platform to extract data to help position it's search engine gain an unfair advantage. And some demands being made by Google would increase the cost of Roku hardware, which would put it at a competitive disadvantage against Google's Chromecast media streamer.

This could get really ugly because Roku claims that Google wants the YouTube app to be given preferential treatment for searches. Google wants Roku to manipulate search results to favor their content on the Roku platform whenever the YouTube channel is open. For instance, the YouTube Music results would come up first, even if users favor other music apps that they often use instead.

Here is the full email that Roku sent out:

“Dear Roku Customer,

We are sending this email to update you on the possibility that Google may take away your access to the YouTube TV channel on Roku. Recent negotiations with Google to carry YouTube TV have broken down because Roku cannot accept Google’s unfair terms as we believe they could harm our users.

Ensuring a great streaming experience at an exceptional value is the core of our business. We will always stand up for our users, which is why we cannot accept Google’s unfair and anticompetitive requirements to manipulate your search results, impact the usage of your data and ultimately cost you more.

While we are deeply disappointed in Google’s decision to use their monopoly power to try and force terms that will directly harm streamers, we remain committed to reaching an agreement with Google that preserves your access to YouTube TV, protects your data and ensures a level playing field for companies to compete. We encourage you to contact Google and urge them to reach an agreement to continue offering YouTube TV on Roku and to follow standard industry practices pledging not to require access to sensitive search data or to manipulate your search results.

Thank you,

Roku”

We are not sure if this can amicably be resolved, or if this instead will drag on for some time. With more people cutting the cord, the stakes keep getting higher. This past fall, Roku and Charter Spectrum failed to agree on their dispute and their Spectrum TV channel is still not yet available on Roku.

YouTube claims they have worked with Roku "In good faith." And these are just negotiations, and the claims being made are to leverage their position during these negotiations.

Guess these carriage disputes are now becoming a fact of life, and we better get used to it. Because as time goes on, this will probably become the norm rather than the exception. As cord cutters, the best way to protect yourselves is to invest in alternative media streamers to enjoy uninterrupted coverage of your favorite streaming channels.

Fortunately, media streamers that use Android cost little with the exception being a Nvidia SHIELD Pro. Apple TV is also another alternative but these will both cost $150-$200. We have not yet seen many carriage disputes on either of these platforms.

Apple TV just came out with a brand new model, so it may be possible to find their 4K models on eBay a lot cheaper. Other than a new remote and slightly faster CPU, there is not a lot of difference between either of these models.

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