How YouTube TV stacks up against DirecTV Now, PlayStation Vue, and Sling TV
(credit: Flickr: Rego Korosi )
YouTube announced its long-rumored YouTube TV service last week, plunging the online video platform into the competitive world of live TV streaming. On the surface, the $35-per-month YouTube TV looks like a good deal: dozens of broadcast and cable channels (including numerous sports networks), a cloud-based DVR service, up to three simultaneous streams, and more. YouTube TV will launch sometime later this year, but there is already a lot of competition for the service. The biggest challengers-DirecTV Now, PlayStation Vue, and Sling TV-offer many similar features to YouTube TV, and that will undoubtably make it difficult for aspiring cord-cutters to know if they should wait for YouTube's service or take the plunge now.
To aid in that decision, here's a breakdown of these four TV-streaming services and their major features.
| Specs compared: TV-streaming services | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube TV | DirecTV Now | PlayStation Vue | Sling TV | |
| Monthly price | $35 | $35 | $40 | $20 |
| Starting number of channels | 44 | 60+ | 45+ | 30+ |
| Included sports channels | ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPNU, ESPN News, SEC Network, CSN, NBC Sports Network, Fox Sports, BTN, FS1, FS2 | ESPN, ESPN2, Fox Sports | ESPN, ESPN2, FS1, FS2, NBC Sports Network | ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3 |
| Available add-ons | Showtime and Fox Soccer Plus, but price details unknown | HBO for $5/month, Cinemax for $5/month, Showtime for $8/month | Epix for $4/month, Espanol Pack (nine channels) for $5/month, numerous standalone channels including HBO | Multiple add-on packages ranging from $5-$15/month |
| DVR | Yes | No | Yes, limited by channel | Yes, in beta |
| DVR storage | Cloud-based, unlimited storage, videos saved for nine months | N/A | Cloud-based, shows saved for 28 days | Cloud-based, 100 hours included |
| On-demand | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Number of simultaneous streams | 3 | 2 | 5 | 1 |
| Device compatibility | Android, iOS, Chromecast | Android, iOS, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast | Android, iOS, Apple TV, PS3, PS4, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Chromecast | Android, iOS, Apple TV, Android TV, Chromecast, Roku, Amazon Fire TV and tablets, Xbox One |
The first thing to note about YouTube TV is that it will launch with just one subscription tier. Everything the service offers will be included in the $35-per-month price-at least for now. As YouTube and Google land deals with other networks, we could see YouTube TV expand into higher-priced subscription tiers. But since there's just one plan right now, it makes it easy to compare it to the base-tier packages of DirecTV Now, PlayStation Vue, and Sling TV. In this comparison, we're only looking at live TV-streaming services, not online video streaming services like Hulu, Netflix, or Amazon Video.
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