Did you know that you could just grab an old computer slap Ubuntu on it, and get all of those services through only 1 HDMI slot?
For instance a given content may be available in glorious 4K only via an app on a TV, 1080p via a windows or mac machine, and dogshit 720p that actually manages to look worse than old SD on Linux.
This is basically true of every service with Youtube TV being the least bad and showing at least reasonable quality. In theory showing lesser quality streams to less locked down platforms is supposed to make piracy harder. In reality popular shows are always available same day anyway.
Ultimately if you want creators to get paid and to enjoy the highest quality on Linux you need to both pay for and pirate the content and watch for instance on jellyfin.
In case any confusion remains these latter are available at tv.youtube.com with a subscription.
The purpose of youtube for most consumers is to consume video content. Much of the professionally produced video content is TV shows and movies which obviously remains popular. This includes by reference content originating from a range of platforms HBO/Showtime/Starz/Paramount/AMC and so forth
EG you select HBO and Showtime as part of your package and can view the same content as is on MAX or showtime in the singular unified youtubeTV interface. Kind of a mixture of TIVO and netflix with a better interface.
For my needs (random videos I search on an ad-hoc basis) I can get 4K with no issue on Firefox on Linux.
Stop spreading misinformation.
There is a significant segment of the internet that thrives in the gutters between paid services, straight up piracy sites, and actual "dark web" sites that require TOR or other specialized access. The restreamers that live in those gutters are questionable at best, straight up illegal at worst, and fund themselves through fraudulent ads, or legit ads for sketchy or dangerous services and sites.
It is entirely possible to use those sites safely, just like it's also possible to navigate dark alleys in major urban centres in the late hours, but that doesn't make it a low-risk activity.
The only danger involved here is in the actual downloaded content. There have been a few codec/filetype vulns for video files in the past, sure, but one that deploys through the browser through a local Plex instance would be pretty interesting, to say the least.
They have an associated aggregator that has no ads on it, it's just a search bar and "What can we hook you up with?".
I pay $20 a month for it. Some may question what the point of paying for a torrenting service is, instead of paying the streaming sites. However, I used to pay for netflix and prime video, and I only went BACK to torrenting after things started happening to enshitify the product (like struggling to get full res videos because I run linux). The answer is simple: Ease of access.
I literally end up doing this for things I'm actually paying for when I want to watch the high quality version on a PC. I haven't owned an actual TV in years.
This infographic is a bit out of date, but you get the idea https://i.imgur.com/IrxoHI3.png
It's overall a vastly superior experience.
I admit this isn't a domain I'm particularly fluent in. As a matter of fact, I thought that was already the case with all the talk about "GPU acceleration" of desktops. I think there was an HN post about Windows a few days ago, with people commenting on how all this changed between Windows 95 and 8/10.
For Linux users wanting a home theatre experience, I feel they are probably more inclined to go the bluray/piracy route. Personally I use my Android TV to stream in 4K with surround sound but am satisfied that I can still play everything using Linux, albeit at a lower resolution.
Please don't grease the wheels of the attestation hype train.
[1] https://www.reddit.com/r/netflix/comments/n8ilcz/4kuhd_on_li...