WOW! Replacing its Own Cable Packages With YouTube TV Beginning This Summer
YouTube TV is already the largest live TV streaming service on the market, with around 6.3 million users. The platform will soon be expanding its reach, as YouTube has reached a deal with the cable, internet, and phone provider WOW! in a groundbreaking agreement that will essentially see it replace a traditional pay-TV package.
Starting this summer, WOW! will no longer offer customers the opportunity to sign up for a traditional cable package. The company will still provide broadband and phone plans, but customers who want to sign up for pay TV will only have one option: YouTube TV. WOW! services areas in the Southeast and Midwestern United States, covering more than 860 zip codes total. Customers in cities like Charleston, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Panama City and more will be affected by the change.
Users may see their channel selection decrease when YouTube TV becomes their primary TV provider. The service offers 100+ channels, though which ones you’ll get will depend on which market you’re in. That’s more channels than WOW!’s small channel bundle offers, but fewer than both the medium and large plans. Price is the biggest advantage with YouTube TV; its base plan comes in at $72.99 per month, while WOW! begins at $74.99 in many markets. YouTube TV subscribers also get a big discount on NFL Sunday Ticket, which is on sale now.
YouTube TV does have some other features WOW! customers will enjoy. There’s no equipment needed to start streaming YouTube TV, simply download the app on a streaming player or smart TV and start watching. YouTube TV also does not come with any long-term contracts, though it is not yet clear if current WOW! TV customers will be locked into their contract terms once the switch to YouTube TV is executed this summer.
The agreement between WOW! and YouTube is so unique because instead of simply giving the ability to bundle a streaming service with your monthly cable bill, as many providers now offer, it essentially replaces a traditional cable offering with a live TV streaming service. It’s a trailblazing pact, and more media companies might try to pursue similar arrangements with other live TV streamers if it proves to be successful
This is just the latest deal YouTube has made with a large broadband provider. In March, the company announced an agreement with Frontier Communications that allows Frontier’s broadband customers to bundle their internet with YouTube TV. Frontier does not offer a pay-TV service of its own, so YouTube’s deal with WOW! is the next evolutionary step in terms of offering YouTube TV through third parties.
YouTube TV isn’t tied to a traditional pay-TV company like some of its competitors, such as DIRECTV STREAM are. That means it can shop itself around to every cable provider in the country if it wants to, and its well-recognized brand will be an attractive draw for companies that want to get themselves out of the flailing pay-TV business while there’s still time.
YouTube TV
YouTube TV is a live TV streaming service with more than 60 channels for $72.99/month. This plan includes local channels, 32 of the top 35 cable channels, and regional sports networks (RSNs) in select markets. The service includes an unlimited DVR.