Apple is to start streaming video content from the massively popular YouTube website, using its Apple TV box.
The announcement means Apple TV users will be able to browse a huge range of content on their TVs rather than computer screens. YouTube is the fourth most visited website on the internet, with users around the world watching a remarkable 10 million videos per day.
“YouTube is a worldwide sensation, and Apple TV is bringing it directly from the internet onto the widescreen TV in your living room,” said Apple boss, Steve Jobs.
There are concerns that some of the low-quality video material on YouTube will look unacceptably bad when viewed on a large flatscreen TV.
'For Apple this could be a good deal, as there is limited movie content available on the Apple TV, or iTunes,' said Carl Gressum, senior analyst at Ovum. 'The downside is that Youtube streams low resolution content. Low-quality resolution is more accepted on a PC, but not on a big living room TV.'
However, it does significantly increase the amount of material the Apple TV box can access.
In fact, the move is being seen as a face-saving device by Apple. Many observers have bemoaned the lack of available material you can currently watch using Apple TV and iTunes. The YouTube deal goes some way toward answering these concerns.
Apple has also announced a new version of the Apple TV with a larger, 160GB hard drive. The new box will cost £269.
