YouTube TV lures new subscribers with free Chromecast

YouTube TV is using the new Chromecast with Google TV streaming device as a carrot to entice consumers into subscribing to its live streaming TV service.

The company is giving away a free Chromecast ($49.99) to subscribers who sign up for YouTube TV and pay $64.99 for their first month. The offer is only available to users who subscribe to YouTube TV between October 15, 2020 and December 31, 2020 and make at least one valid payment.

The offer coincides with the launch of new Chromecast, which for now is the only way to get access to the new Google TV platform. Google TV, which builds off and replaces Android TV, includes improved integrations and voice controls for live TV.

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Google TV also places Google Assistant-powered search up front and provides cross-platform results along with content recommendations that pull from all available streaming services. One of the most significant updates for the new Chromecast is the inclusion of a voice remote.

Google is also offering a promotion that packages a new Chromecast with six months of Netflix for $89.99.

David Watkins, who heads up the Connected Home Devices team at Strategy Analytics, praised Google TV for better playing to Google’s strengths.

“The inclusion of a new Google TV UI layer as well as Google Assistant support will mean that Google will be in a much better position to leverage its core search capabilities. Search, navigation and curation are three key areas of potential differentiation for streaming media device brands and all the signs point towards Google having enough in its arsenal to compete with the very best in this space,” he said.