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HBO Max, Youtube land on Spectrum smart boxes

Two new streaming services are rolling out this week for users of Charter/Spectrum’s online-connected set-top boxes.

AT&T WarnerMedia’s streaming service HBO Max and Google’s ad-supported, user-generated content streamer YouTube are now accessible within the Spectrum TV guide for digital cable customers.

“As the video landscape continues to change, we are evolving our products and making it easier for our customers to watch what they want by providing access to streaming apps from convenient launch points within the Spectrum TV experience,” Elena Ritchie, an executive in charge of Charter’s video experience, said in a statement.

A subscription to HBO Max will be required for Spectrum TV customers interested in the television and film content there. HBO Max currently retail for $15 a month, with a slimmer, ad-supported version offered at $10 a month.

YouTube is free to access, though customers can pay Google directly for YouTube Premium, which eliminates most advertisements.

Prior to this week’s launch, Spectrum cable customers already had native access to Netflix through their electronic TV guide. Ritchie said Charter/Spectrum is focused on offering more native access to third-party streaming video apps “in the coming months.”

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About the Author:

Matthew Keys

Matthew Keys covers the business of broadcast and streaming TV, radio broadcasting, social media, technology and telecommunications. A journalist for over 15 years, Matthew previously worked at Thomson Reuters, KGO-TV in San Francisco, KTXL in Sacramento and McNaughton Newspapers. He received 9 California Journalism Awards between 2018 and 2020, and is a member of IRE (Investigative Reporters and Editors).
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