What’s Happening With Roku and Google?
Roku has sent out an email blast to its users about the possibility of removing YouTube TV from its platform. Apparently, negotiations between the two companies have “broken down” as Roku is unwilling to accept Google’s terms.
In the email, Roku says that the terms laid out by Google are “unfair” and that they could “harm our users.”
Here’s part of the email Roku sent to its users:
The email is fairly vague and doesn’t get into the specifics regarding what the unfavorable terms were.
However, after the email went out, Axios did some digging and found out some more details. Apparently, Google is asking Roku to add a dedicated search row for YouTube within its software. Allegedly, that included “giving YouTube search results more prominent placement.”
According to Axios, Google even requested Roku block search results from other streaming providers while YouTube is installed on the Roku device.
It’s not just YouTube TV, as apparently, Google requested similar treatment for YouTube Music as well. Google requested voice commands for music search to default to YouTube Music when the YouTube app is open.
The report even indicated that Google “threatened” to require Roku to use specific types of chips or memory cards in its streaming products. These chips could cost more, which would lead to more expensive devices for customers.
Google hasn’t commented on the situation yet, but a Roku spokesperson said the following:
Will Roku Users Lose YouTube TV?
It’s still early at this point, so it’s hard to say whether Google will actually pull YouTube TV from Roku devices. Similar posturing occurs in the traditional cable TV industry. Sometimes, the two sides can work things out before it actually comes down to removing a channel or service entirely.
We’ll have to wait and see how this plays out, but hopefully, it works out in a way that’s favorable to the Roku users, as that’s who could suffer the most from failed negotiations like these.
