
Roku and Google have resolved their longtime differences over the YouTube and YouTube TV apps, reaching a multi-year carriage extension a day before a key deadline.
The two tech companies have waged a war of words throughout much of 2021, but reached an agreement ahead of Thursday’s expiration of the YouTube distribution agreement. Already, Roku had opted to take YouTube TV out of its channel store, meaning new customers were unable to sign up, though existing ones could still use the popular service.
Roku has long maintained that its objections were not financial, but rather had to do with Google’s efforts to steer users away from Roku’s search tools and, in so doing, gain improper access to important data. Google hit back, saying Roku was being unreasonable in its expectations of how apps run on its platform.
Financial terms were not disclosed.
“This agreement represents a positive development for our shared customers, making both YouTube and YouTube TV available for all streamers on the Roku platform,” a Roku spokesperson said.
“We’re happy to share that we’ve reached a deal with Roku to continue distributing the YouTube and YouTube TV apps on Roku devices,” a YouTube rep said. “This means that Roku customers will continue to have access to YouTube and that the YouTube TV app will once again be available in the Roku store for both new and existing members. We are pleased to have a partnership that benefits our mutual users.”
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