YouTube TV users have long complained of poor picture quality, low bitrate and other issues that impact the streaming experience. The company finally addressed the issues, including an increased bitrate for some live content, a fix for the 5.1 surround sound syncing issue and a major upgrade for the YouTube TV app for Apple TV.
After subscribers experienced a steep price hike of $72.99/month, it’s crucial that YouTube TV ensures a smooth viewing performance for its users to enjoy.
In a Reddit post on the YouTube TV subreddit last week, the company revealed that it’s testing transcoding changes, which will increase the bitrate for live 1080p content. A higher bitrate means better video quality.
From a livestreaming perspective, however, this also means the video requires more bandwidth—which may lead to buffering issues. It’s crucial that viewers have a strong internet connection in order to have a quality streaming experience.
This is likely why the picture quality improvement will only target devices that support the VP9 codec with high-speed internet connections, according to the post.
The test will roll out over the next few weeks. If everything goes to plan, YouTube TV will make the change permanent by the summer.
The company didn’t mention any plans to upgrade 720p content.
The Reddit post also mentions that YouTube TV found the cause of a 5.1 audio/video sync issue and is currently working on a solution. In June 2022, a few Reddit and Twitter users reported audio sync issues after YouTube TV’s 5.1 audio update. While the company didn’t specify what exactly caused the sync issue, the fix will likely be a great relief to some subscribers.
YouTube TV then outlined several recent bug fixes to the YouTube TV app for Apple TV. This includes 4K playback issues, YouTube TV’s HDR implementation and users seeing a black screen when opening up the app or switching between content. The company also said that it’s trying to find a solution for app crashes on the Apple TV 4K (1st generation).
After announcing its multiview feature last month, YouTube TV said in the recent Reddit post that it’s continuing to experiment with upgrades ahead of the NFL season.
Plus, users can now sign up for NFL Sunday Ticket subscriptions at a discounted presale price until June 6.