YouTube, which is owned by Google is pulling the plug on some older devices, according to the company. The move is one that has come as a relative surprise to users, but at this point – it would appear as though some smart TV’s will be included, in addition to the range of iPad, and iPhone devices that will no longer support YouTube’s mobile app. Google said in a blog post that, “As we upgrade the YouTube Data API to bring more features, we’ll begin shutting down the old version on April 20, 2015.”
Smart TV’s made by Sony and Panasonic before 2013 were included in the mass exodus, as well as any iPhone, iPad, or iPod running anything less than iOS 7. Interestingly though, it would appear as though there isn’t much that users can do to prevent the action from taking place. Now that the app has officially been shut down, the older version that is, it leaves users running to the Internet to play YouTube videos. However, if HTML5, or flash isn’t supported on the device, then users will be out of luck there as well. Perhaps the most notable member of the YouTube exodus is the original Apple TV. Which is still a popular device on the general market.
It’s an interesting move as a whole that caught many users off guard, despite the fact that Google was completely within its rights to make this move. It’s a relatively small group of people who will be impacted by the Apple exodus, however, it does speak to the larger problem that many users of technology are facing. Pieces of technology that are relatively expensive in the grand scheme of things, are becoming obsolete at a faster, and faster rate – creating a problem that never existed previously within the entire tech or consumer space.
It’s unclear right now how this will impact Google or YouTube. At this point it’s very likely that things remain running on the course that they’re currently on, but some users could be a little confused, or dismissed by the fact that Google has seemingly dismissed them for having older pieces of mobile technology.
