Google Chromecast update disables ability to play content from 'unauthorised' sources

It looks like Google doesn't want users of its Chromecast media streaming device to beam their own content to their TV screens.

The Internet giant has pushed a new update to its $35 media device that breaks support for AllCast, a third-party app that allows users to stream their own content to their TVs via the device. The app allowed users to play multimedia content stored in their Android device's gallery, Dropbox, or Google Drive.

Koushik Dutta, the developer of the app alleges that Google's latest Chromecast update intentionally breaks AllCast (which used to be initially called AirCast) by disabling 'video_playback' support from the ChromeCast application. He posted an update on his Google+ page saying that this was the second time Google purposefully "removed/ disabled the ability to play media from external sources." He says that it also confirms his suspicion about the Chromecast developer program' policy seems of taking a heavy-handed approach, allowing only approved content through the device. He adds that Chromecast will probably not be indie developer friendly as Google's stand on third-party apps was not clear.

Google had unveiled the Chromecast on July 24. It is a small stick roughly the same size as a thumb drive that can be plugged into an HDMI port on flat-panel TVs. It brings Netflix, Google's YouTube site and other Internet content from Google Play to what is usually the biggest screen in households.

The device connects with smartphones, tablets and personal computers to beam Internet content to TVs. However, unlike the Apple TV, it doesn't let users beam local content to TVs due to Google's copyright worries, and connects to an Internet server for receiving content. 
App developers need to add support for their apps if they want users to be able to beam content through the device. Having said that, users can also send their Chrome browser tabs to the device, which means video playing on any web page can be streamed to the TV through Chromecast. The tab casting feature is still in beta, though.

Google unveils $35 Chromecast that lets you stream Internet content to TV

Google Inc. has unveiled a gadget that will lean on its widely used Chrome Web browser and take aim at Apple in the living room.

The new device, called Chromecast, is part of the company's attempt to make it easier for people to access Internet content on their TVs. Chromecast is a small stick roughly the same size as a thumb drive that can be plugged into an HDMI port on flat-panel TVs. It brings Netflix, Google's YouTube site and other Internet content to what is usually the biggest screen in households.

Forrester Research analyst Sarah Rotman Epps said Chromecast could undermine Apple in the still-nascent market to plug streaming devices into TVs, just as the Nexus tablets have siphoned some sales away from Apple's iPad.

Google's previous products designed to connect TV sets to the Internet haven't worked out well. The company initially tried to embed an operating system called Google TV into sets made by TV manufacturers, but that flopped. Last year, Google introduced an orb-like device called the Nexus Q in hopes of delivering more Internet video to flat-panel TVs, only to quickly pull the product from the market.

"Chromecast looks like a smart and disruptive device," Rotman Epps said. "Maybe it took the other failures for Google to get it right."

Google wants to have a presence on TVs because it could open up a lucrative new channel for it to sell more ads, which bring in most of its revenue.

In a show of its determination to make inroads on TVs, Google started selling Chromecast for just $35 on Wednesday. That price undercuts the most popular Internet-streaming devices made by Apple and Roku. An Apple TV box sells for $99, while the least expensive Roku box capable of showing high-definition video goes for $80. Roku, a company that formed within Internet video subscription service Netflix Inc., also sells an Internet streaming stick similar to Chromecast for $100.

Earlier this year, Apple revealed that it has sold more than 13 million of its streaming boxes. Roku said its sales of streaming boxes surpassed 5 million units this year.

The Chromecast device connects with smartphones, tablets and personal computers to beam Internet connect to TVs. The Apple and Roku streaming boxes rely on a standard remote control to select Internet content.

As an enticement to get people to try Chromecast, Google is offering three months of free Netflix service with a purchase of the Internet-streaming stick. That translates to a $24 value, leaving the cost of the device at $11 for those who would have gotten Netflix anyway.