Watching PBS live without cable no longer requires an antenna or access to Locast. More than 100 PBS member stations are now streaming through YouTube TV, Google’s $5- per-month channel bundle. PBS says that the launch covers more than 75% of U.S. households and that more stations will come online next year. The channels appear to support both DVR and on-demand programming, and there’s a live feed for PBS Kids in addition to the main local feed.
The launch has been a long time coming for PBS, which has been talking about joining live TV streaming services such as YouTube TV for over a year. Because all PBS member stations are independently owned, and because PBS programming comes from different stations around the country, it’s taken a while to secure live linear streaming rights and work out the costs.
PBS had announced a deal with YouTube TV in July, but for now there’s no word on when PBS will come to other live TV services such as Hulu with Live TV or Sling TV. PBS hasn’t published a full list of markets with YouTube TV support yet, either, but if you have YouTube TV already, you can either look through the channel guide or search for PBS stations to see whether you’re covered.
If you don’t have YouTube TV, you can visit the welcome page and plug in your zip code to see if PBS is offered in your area.
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