Drama has been ongoing between Roku and Google nearly all of this year over the use of YouTube and YouTube TV on the biggest streaming platform in the United States. Today, Roku and Google have finally settled on a deal to keep the app available to Roku owners.
Confirmed by Roku on Twitter, the company says it has agreed to a multi-year extension of its contract with Google for YouTube and YouTube TV, with the deal effective as of today. Google has yet to publicly acknowledge the deal.
The deal will mean that the YouTube app will remain available in the Roku Channel Store and that YouTube TV, which was removed in April, will return. The YouTube app was previously scheduled to be removed from the Roku Channel Store as of tomorrow, December 9, if a deal had not been reached.
Terms of the new deal have not been disclosed.
The feud between Roku and Google erupted this past spring, when Roku warned customers that YouTube TV “may” be removed from the platform as negotiations between Roku and Google were failing. Days later, that’s what happened, and nothing progressed for months. Roku claimed that Google was asking for user data and special treatment in search, a claim that Google called false. Google claimed that it was simply seeking to renew its existing contract with Roku, though leaked emails did support Roku’s statements to some extent.
It was later revealed by Google that the contract around the standard YouTube app would end in December, leading to the two companies going back and forth yet again over the negotiations in a public manner.
Whatever went on behind the scenes, it’s certainly good news for the millions of Roku owners and those being gifted the device over this Christmas holiday that YouTube won’t be leaving the platform anymore under this new deal.
Developing…
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- Roku LE competes with Walmart’s Android TV stick at just $15, but will only be sold for Black Friday
- Google TV is reportedly ‘a top priority’ w/ higher partner payments than Roku offers, new ad push
Author: Ben Schoon
Source: 9TO5Google
