Is YouTube’s Primetime Channels a Delight or Another App With 30+ Streaming Services?

What new does YouTube bring to the table among other competitors by becoming a hub of different streaming platforms?

The plight of jumping from one streaming platform to another to find one movie or any other content you’ve been looking for can be irksome. And, what’s even worse? You may have to pay for separate apps even if you’ve found the right content. To fix this, YouTube has come up with Primetime Channels. But is the deal worth it? Let’s try to get our heads around it, shall we?

Up until now, on YouTube, you could watch videos from creators and rent or purchase a TV show or movie, but now YouTube is adding yet another dimension. Starting November 1st, 2022, you can sign up for movies, TV shows, and sports from over 30 streaming services all in one place, a platform that YouTube has termed as Primetime Channels. These include the likes of Paramount+, Starz, Showtime, AMC+, ViX+, and Epix, with NBA league pass and many other services to join soon.

Now there are a few things to consider. First, this facility is only available in the US, and big names such as Netflix, Disney Plus, HBO Max, Apple TV+, and Hulu are missing from the Primetimehugyihhhy Channel. Why does this matter? We’ll get to this a little later in this post. Let’s first discuss the intent of YouTube behind this offering –

The Germ Of An Idea:

On YouTube’s official blog Erin Teague, the director of product management, writes –

With more streaming options than ever, it can get overwhelming to jump from app to app to find what you’re looking for.

With this offering, users can sign up for streaming services, browse their content and watch it directly on YouTube. To put things into perspective – Let’s assume you loved the trailer of a movie or a TV show. You won’t have to go elsewhere to watch movies or TV shows. You can continue watching it on YouTube itself. Not just that, you will also be able to access curated behind-the-scene-footages and cast interviews.

Is YouTube The First Platform To Bring Many Streaming Platforms In One App?

There are more than 200+ streaming services in the US alone, and like we said, jumping from one streaming app to another for content can be irksome and heavy on the pocket. In that regard, something like YouTube’s Platform Channels can make life easy. But the question here is – What novelty does this offering bring to the table? After all, YouTube isn’t the first platform that combines so many streaming services into one API.

You’ve got Amazon Prime which offers content from Discovery+, AMC+, Showtime, Starz, and other platforms. So do Apple, Roku, and others. In fact, Verizon recently launched +Play, which featured Netflix, Disney+,  discovery+, Peloton and Live Nation’s Veeps, and many others. How will YouTube’s Prime Channels compete with these competitors?

How Can YouTube Benefit From This Move?

When it comes to a subscriber base, the YouTube Premium model falls behind Amazon Prime Video. Here we are talking about Youtube Premium and not YouTube alone since that alone enjoys a userbase of approximately 2.30 billion. It could be that through this move, YouTube might be able to up its revenue and might be able to capitalize on its existing user base besides trying to solve a problem. Keeping aside YouTube TV ($64.99/month) and the movie rental it charges for, a lot of content is free, unlike Prime Video. So, this aspect may, too, work in YouTube’s favor.

That’s an assumption; what’s your take on this?

Where Is Primetime Channels Feature Located On YouTube?

The feature can be found in the Movies & TV hub under the Explore tab. Once you have signed up for a channel or a variety of channels, they will appear on your homepage.

How To Access Primetime Channel (US Only)

1. Open YouTube on your web browser.
2. Click on Movies & TV on the left panel.
3. Under Primetime Channels, you can see the streaming services available to you.
4. Click on the icon of the streaming service you want to purchase, after which you will go to their Primetime Channel page.
5. You can now browse the content that they have to offer.
6. Click on Sign up from the top to complete your purchase.

The Future Plans

YouTube aims to partner with more streaming services to feature its content on YouTube. But that would happen gradually. Also, it intends to expand this feature to its worldwide user base.

Wrapping Up

YouTube’s Primetime Channels do pique interest. But will it get big hitters like Netflix, HBO Max, and many others to partner? Will this offering be received well? This is something that time will tell. If you liked what you read, do give us a thumbs up. For more such content, keep reading WeTheGeek.