Apple TV and iPhone Both Gain YouTube Access

Apple announced Wednesday that its promised software update to the Apple TV has been released; the update enables Apple TV users to watch video from the popular YouTube Web site. What's more, Apple revealed that when it ships on June 29th, the iPhone will include a special YouTube viewing application too.

YouTube is one of the most popular sites on the Web for watching user-generated video content; the site is owned by Google. The company has also reached content partnership deals with leading providers like CBS, BBC, Universal Music Group and others.

The new Apple TV software, available for download through the Apple TV's software update feature, enables users to navigate YouTube to look for videos; YouTube members can log in to their accounts on Apple TV, as well.

YouTube is in the process of encoding videos using H.264, the advanced video codec built into QuickTime 7 that enables higher-quality video to be streamed over the Internet at lower bit rates. The iPhone will be the first mobile device to use those H.264-encoded videos, according to Apple. More than 10,000 videos are expected to be available in H.264 format on June 29th; YouTube will be adding more each week, and the company will have its full catalog available in H.264 by this fall.