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YouTube TV officially launches

YouTube's subscription TV service, YouTube TV, launched Tuesday in five U.S. cities: NYC, LA, SF, Chicago and Philly. The $35 monthly subscription service is meant to offer cord-cutters cheap access to cable on desktop, mobile or Google Chromecast for TV.

YouTube TV currently streams content from 39 channels, including the major broadcast networks and an array of cable channels, and it plans to announce more network partnerships soon. The subscription also gives users access to YouTube Red original content, a DVR cloud with unlimited storage and up to six different user log-ins.

Winners: YouTube (subscription revenue), Google (access to more TV consumption data), users (cheap alternative to cable).

Losers: Cable companies. (YouTube TV's service is significantly cheaper than the average cable package and allows users to cancel their plans at any time). Netflix, Amazon and eventually Hulu, Comcast and 21st Century Fox. (All will compete against YouTube for more content distribution rights.

Go deeper

Lachlan Markay
6 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Collins helps contractor before pro-Susan PAC gets donation

Sen. Susan Collins during her reelection campaign. Photo: Scott Eisen/Getty Images

A PAC backing Sen. Susan Collins in her high-stakes reelection campaign received $150,000 from an entity linked to the wife of a defense contractor whose firm Collins helped land a federal contract, new public records show.

Why it matters: The executive, Martin Kao of Honolulu, leaned heavily on his political connections to boost his business, federal prosecutors say in an ongoing criminal case against him. The donation linked to Kao was veiled until last week.

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Lachlan Markay
6 hours ago - Politics & Policy

How cutting GOP corporate cash could backfire

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

Companies pulling back on political donations, particularly to members of Congress who voted against certifying President Biden's election win, could inadvertently push Republicans to embrace their party's rightward fringe.

Why it matters: Scores of corporate PACs have paused, scaled back or entirely abandoned their political giving programs. While designed to distance those companies from events that coincided with this month's deadly siege on the U.S. Capitol, research suggests the moves could actually empower the far-right.

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Alayna Treene, author of Sneak Peek
9 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Scoop: Kaine, Collins pitch Senate colleagues on censuring Trump

Sen. Tim Kaine speaks with Sen. Susan Collins. Photo: Andrew Harnik/AP via Getty Images

Sens. Tim Kaine and Susan Collins are privately pitching their colleagues on a bipartisan resolution censuring former President Trump, three sources familiar with the discussions tell Axios.

Why it matters: Senators are looking for a way to condemn Trump on the record as it becomes increasingly unlikely Democrats will obtain the 17 Republican votes needed to gain a conviction in his second impeachment.

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