HBO, Twitch, and other streaming apps may come to Tesla’s dashboard

By Allison Matyus December 11, 2019

Tesla models already have a slew of special infotainment features, but even more in-car streaming services and video game streaming might become available to Tesla owners in the future.

Twitter user @greentheonly, who is a Tesla owner and hacker, tweeted his discovery in the carmaker’s operating system on Tuesday, December 10, according to Teslarati. He found premium streaming apps like HBO Go, HBO Now, and Comedy Central, as well as popular gaming platforms like Twitch and Mixer.

These additional video streaming services would join YouTube and Netflix, which are already apart of Tesla’s Premium Connectivity package. The premium package costs Tesla owners $10 a month and includes other features like the satellite view navigation system and live traffic data.

Telsa

The streaming service compatibility debuted with the V10.0 software update in September. Known as Tesla Theater, you can only access Netflix and YouTube videos if the car is in park and is connected to Wi-Fi. This could be to occupy drivers and passengers while waiting for their car to charge at a charging station. Still, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said that Tesla owners would be able to access these streaming platforms while the vehicle is moving in the coming years based on pending government regulations.

“When full self-driving is approved by regulators, we will enable video while moving,” Musk tweeted in July.

It’s unclear if the additional streaming services that were just discovered would be included in the Tesla Theater, or if they would become available once you are able to stream while driving. We reached out to Tesla to find out, and we’ll update this story once we hear back.

While the video streaming services are probably meant for passengers, its location on the central dashboard touchscreen could become distracting for the driver if Tesla Theater does get cleared for access while the car is in motion.

However, since one of Tesla’s main priorities is perfecting completely autonomous and sustainable vehicles, these full-stacked infotainment systems and included streaming services could eventually allow for the driver to sit back and binge-watch their favorite shows while the car does all the work on the road.

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Allison Matyus is a general news reporter at Digital Trends. She covers any and all tech news, including issues around social…

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