From ReclaimTheNet.org….
On Monday, Roku sent an email to users notifying them that it might no longer provide the YouTube TV app due to Google’s anti-competitive demands, including the preferential treatment of YouTube’s search results.
The row comes as Google faces antitrust lawsuits filed by state attorneys general and the Department of Justice.
Roku and Google are competitors in several sectors, including the smart TV content, smart TV operating systems, and Smart TV hardware devices. According to Roku, Google is threatening to remove YouTube TV in an effort to force it to bow to demands that favor YouTube apps; demands that Roku has described as anti-competitive.
Google allegedly wants Roku to create a dedicated row for YouTube search results within the Roku smart TV interface, a demand that would give YouTube preferential treatment. Additionally, Google wants Roku to stop showing search results from other content providers, like Pandora, when the YouTube app is open, even if the user’s have set another music app as their default.
