Earlier this week, YouTube TV began offering 4K support and offline playback for an extra $20 a month. Now, the Google-owned streaming service is promoting the new YouTube TV 4K Plus 'add-on' with the offer of a free Chromecast with Google TV streaming stick... but only for a lucky few.
According to Engadget, an email from YouTube TV to select subscribers reads: "To ensure our loyal YouTube TV members have a great viewing experience (including the ability to watch 4K content on our optional, new add-on service), we would like to offer you a free Chromecast with Google TV device."
The email is said to include a link to the Google Store and a promo code that lets you pick-up Google's 4K media streamer without paying a dime. There's no need to sign up to 4K Plus to get the free offer, but Google does make it clear that the code is only valid until the end of the July, or until stocks run dry.
YouTube TV subscribers pay $65 per month for 85+ live TV channels including NBC, ABC, CBS, ESPN, CNN, MTV, Discovery, TBS and the NFL Network. The new 4K Plus add-on gets you 4K streaming and offline playback for an additional $20 (although it's currently on offer at $10 a month for for the first year).
We're big fans of the five-star Chromecast with Google TV, which we described as a "credit to HDR source material". There are certainly worse ways to encourage people to try out 4K streaming.
There is one slight problem: YouTube TV doesn't actually offer much 4K content right now. There are basically a handful of movies, including the likes of Blade Runner and Spider-Man: Homecoming, plus "selected live and on-demand content from Discovery, ESPN, Fox Sports, FX, Nat Geo, NBC Sports, and Tastemade".
Today's largesse comes just two weeks after it was revealed that YouTube TV was giving away a free TiVo Stream 4K to some subscribers, a move some say is linked to Google's ongoing contract dispute with Roku.
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