Google may be bringing FASTs to Chromecast
People who own a Chromecast device know that they need to pay for each respective streaming service that they watch. However, Google has been working on bringing FAST TV channels to the Chromecast platform. FAST stands for Free, Ad-supported Streaming Television. As the name suggests, you don’t have to pay because the ads supply money for the station to operate. There are several FAST streaming services out there in the wild like Tubi, Crackle, and Pluto TV. Google has been contacting services like these to possibly be involved. At this point, we don’t know which companies Google has tapped for this or how many there are.
This will all go through Google TV
Google has been juggling TV between multiple apps. Firstly, there’s YouTube TV, which has been present for a few years. There’s also Google TV; this was previously Google Play Movies and TV. It looks like these FAST channels will be funneled through the Google TV app. Right now, Google TV is more like a central hub where you can discover different shows from different channels and services. You have to pay the respective fees to watch the content, however.
Free TV on Chromecast might not be coming for a little while
Users could possibly start seeing FAST channels hitting Google TV as early as this fall, but there’s the chance that Google could wait until early next year. According to Protocol, there’s a chance that Google could wait to announce this to its smart TV partners.
What is Google TV?
There are tons of video streaming services and channels out there, and it can be overwhelming sometimes. This is where Google TV can be useful. The service started out as Google Play Movies and TV back in 2011. Google changed the name to Google TV just last year. The service shows you a myriad of different movies and TV shows, and it gives you the option to buy them or rent them. It offers content from different services like Disney +, HBO, Peacock, and more. Most content lets you buy it straight from Google, but some movies and shows require you to have a cable provider. There are already free movies that are ad-supported on Google TV, so we’re just waiting on TV. Being able to watch free TV on Chromecast devices might entice more people to pick one up.
