YouTube TV is about to get cheaper for sports fans

YouTube TV is getting closer to rolling out its 10 new genre-specific channel packages, which it first announced last December and plans to launch later this week.

One of those packages has been front and center from the beginning: the YouTube TV Sports Plan, which will include major broadcasters like NBC and Fox. Until now, however, one key detail was missing: the price.

In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Christian Oestlien, YouTube’s vice president of subscription products, revealed that YouTube TV’s upcoming sports plan will cost $65 per month, $18 less than the service’s $83 base plan, representing a 22 percent discount.

When YouTube TV first launched in 2017, its base plan cost $35 a month. Since then, it has more than doubled to $83 per month, so the $65 YouTube TV Sports Plan is at least a small reprieve for sports fans looking to cut their streaming bill.

It’s worth noting that, compared with DirecTV’s MySports Genre Pack, which costs $70 per month, YouTube TV’s Sports plan is $5 cheaper, giving it a small price advantage over its main competitor at launch.

What does the YouTube TV Sports Plan include?

Other channel packages focused on news and entertainment will also be available

There’s still no full channel lineup for the YouTube TV Sports Plan, but YouTube has shared a few key details. So far, the company says the package will include “all the major broadcasters,” which likely means all the national networks that regularly carry live sports, such as CBS, Fox, and NBC.

On top of that, the Sports Plan is set to include dedicated sports networks like FS1, NBC Sports networks, and the full lineup of ESPN channels. YouTube has also confirmed the package will include an ESPN Unlimited subscription. ESPN Unlimited alone costs $30 a month, so having it included with the Sports Plan is a nice bonus.

As for the other channel packages YouTube TV will offer, it has been announced that plans tailored to news and entertainment content will also be available, including an Entertainment Plan for $55 a month that includes channels like Comedy Central, Bravo, Paramount, HGTV and more. Additionally, there will be a way to combine plans, such as the Sports + News Plan, which costs $65 per month, and includes networks such as CNBC, Fox News, MSNBC, and Bloomberg.

In a recent blog post, YouTube announced some of its new plans will be “launching this week,” including its Sports Plan and Entertainment Plan.

“TV should be easy, and with YouTube TV Plans launching this week, we’re giving customers more control over their subscriptions,” YouTube TV said. “Over the next several weeks we are rolling out 10+ plans across Sports, News, Entertainment and Family content, priced lower than the main YouTube TV Plan.”

I’m pretty excited about these new channel packages, mainly because I’m a big believer in paying only for channels I actually watch. YouTube TV’s base plan includes more than 100 channels, which is great if you like a little bit of everything, but if you never touch half of them, there’s no real reason to pay for them. These new packages seem like a smart way to reduce the cost of streaming while still keeping the channels you actually care about. That said, I can’t help but notice and point out the irony of where this is all going. YouTube TV launched as a service designed to help people become cord-cutters, and now, with channel packages, it’s starting to look increasingly like cable.

In other YouTube TV news, the company recently announced it will soon add a fully customizable multiview feature, allowing you to watch any channels you want simultaneously.