At CES 2013 next week, YouTube will be exhibiting mobile pairing with a number of modern devices from manufacturers like Bang & Olufsen, LG, Panasonic, and Sony. The online streaming video service also expects to have the same feature rolling out on other devices throughout the year, from manufacturers such as Philips, Samsung, Sharp, Toshiba, Vizio, and Western Digital.
Hence, with the new “send to TV” feature, owners of Smart TVs from these brands can now use the YouTube smartphone app as a remote control of sorts and push it to a larger screen. (If you have ever used the device-pairing functionality between an Android device and Google TV, you are familiar with how it works.) YouTube’s new feature is based on the idea that people can navigate through content much more efficiently via a smartphone or tablet.
“We want to make YouTube easier and more fun to watch on every screen, including the big one in your living room,” a YouTube spokesperson quoted as saying by the WebProNews.
In a blog post, YouTube’s Francisco Varela says, “These new devices will also have the latest look and feel for YouTube on TV, letting you watch HD videos and channels on the big screen with everyone at home,” Valera adds. “Catch the latest videos from your subscriptions, watch playlists full of 1080p videos and find the next great video faster with search suggestions.”
In fact, this novel feature would give users instant access to videos and channels from the mobile app directly on their TV. They will be able to instantly watch videos they have found on their mobile devices, or queue them up to be watched as a playlist. The feature also allows multiple different users on the same network to add to a communal playlist, rather than just relying on one device for control.
However, as for now, we can only envisage this feature picking up more steam as it releases on more and more devices. The ability to queue up YouTube videos on your smartphone, and then push them to your television is something to be desired. Plus, watching YouTube videos is a group affair anyway, and it is best experienced on the TV in the living room.
But more importantly, YouTube is currently available on 400 million devices, and people watch over 25% of all YouTube videos on mobile devices. The Send To TV feature was first launched in November on Android devices and Google TV.
{iframe width=”640″ height=”360″}http://www.youtube.com/embed/b0zaNHntOe4{/iframe}