DISH Network's Sling TV continues to improve its path blazing Internet TV subscription service, and continues to go after cord-cutting or "cord-never" Latino audiences, with two big additions this week: a new app for Android TV (i.e., the Google Nexus Player), and the addition of ESPN Deportes to its add-on pack for Spanish-speaking live sports nuts.

Here are the details of what Sling TV just announced, and how its targeting the Latino audience is an important part of its expansion strategy.

Android TV App for Nexus Player

First off, Sling TV just announced a new avenue to experience its live over-the-top (OTT) streaming Internet TV offering by launching an Android TV app for the Nexus Player. The app is available on the Google Play Store for Android TV.

On top of that, Sling TV partnered with Google to offer new customers a deal, if they're willing to pre-pay for three months of Sling TV (that's $60 total at $20 per month for the core "Best of Live TV" subscription): they can get 50 percent off a Nexus Player, which normally costs about $100 from Google.

Of course, as an Android TV app, it's available on any Android TV device, which means a bunch of new 2015 Android TV-powered HDTVs from Sony, Phillips, and soon Sharp, along with upcoming TV gaming boxes from Nvidia and Razer.

While Apple may have swung a deal with HBO to limit new set-top subscriptions during "Game of Thrones" season to Apple TV, the addition of Sling TV to Google's Android TV platform represents a coup for the biggest software ecosystem rival to Apple. It's the first live Internet TV offering for the platform, and while Apple may be working on its own media-melding deals (possibly delaying the launch of Apple TV, according to the latest from MacRumors), it's official: Google got there first through Sling TV.

(Photo : Google)

Sling TV is already available on iOS, (regular) Android, Xbox One, Roku, desktop computers (Mac and PC) and Amazon's Fire TV.  

"We're committed to making Sling TV available on the most popular devices consumers use to stream live and on-demand entertainment," said Roger Lynch, CEO of Sling TV, in the company's release. "Today, we again bolstered our device footprint by expanding to Nexus Player's Android TV platform, and we expect this partnership to deliver additional convenience for both new and existing Sling TV customers."

ESPN Deportes Now in $5 'Deportes' Add-On

Just in time for soccer season to kick it up a notch, Sling TV has added ESPN Deportes to its "Deportes Extra" add-on package, which costs $5 per month, on top of the $20 core package.

ESPN Deportes joins a slew of Spanish and English-language sports channels that Sling TV offers, including ESPN, ESPN2, TNT and Robert Rodriguez's El Rey network in the core package.

And as we previously reported, ESPN Deportes will bolster the Spanish-language sports add-on pack, which launched earlier this month with Azteca, beIN Español, Univision, beIN HD (English), Univision, Univision Deportes, and UniMas.

Sling rather strategically launched the add-on pack, and this most recent addition of ESPN Deportes, right in time for some of the most must-watch events in world soccer. As Sling TV's announcement on its blog put it: 

"With this channel addition, our soccer fans now have access to popular content including UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, UEFA Europa League, La Liga's Copa del Rey Final and Supercopa, select European FIFA World Cup qualifying matches, and the highly anticipated 2016 UEFA European Championship."

Of course, there's also MLB baseball and the NBA Finals, along with Monday Night Football, and plenty of other sports you can access through Sling TV plus the Deportes add-on pack.

Latinos a Priority for Next-Gen Cord-Cutting Entertainment

Latinos are a big get for these new Internet TV services, which are trying to take away eyeballs from the big, expensive cable TV providers that have become the status quo over the past few decades -- especially for people looking for anything close to a decent selection of live sports.

Study after study have shown that Latinos, especially millennials, are more tech savvy, more likely to stream video content, and more likely to own and use mobile devices to get their entertainment.

It's why the first official Internet TV subscription service in the U.S. was made specifically for Latinos -- DirecTV's Yaveo kicked off this year's Internet TV boom with a catalogue of Spanish-language Live TV and On Demand telenovelas in late December, 2014.

When Latin Post took a hands-on look at Yaveo shortly after its launch, we predicted that competitors would also see the value of reaching Latinos, and that DirecTV's OTT offering would have to continue what it followed to hold on to that audience.

Sling TV became that first competitor, and with its constant bolstering of its English and Spanish-language offerings, and the lack of any major follow-up by Yaveo, the tables look like they've turned.