Official TV/Film Video Entertainment Apps & Services thread

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  • I think there's been a further redesign of part of iPlayer. All I've noticed so far are some tiles that are vertical rectangles, like DVD cases, on one row and the removal of the waste of space that took up most of the top of the screen (but below the menus) with one show and an image. But it seems an improvement. :thumbup: I'm too tired to investigate further just now. :sleeping:

    Source: iPlayer app on my VM V6 box.

  • I think there's been a further redesign of part of iPlayer. All I've noticed so far are some tiles that are vertical rectangles, like DVD cases, on one row and the removal of the waste of space that took up most of the top of the screen (but below the menus) with one show and an image. But it seems an improvement. :thumbup: I'm too tired to investigate further just now. :sleeping:

    Source: iPlayer app on my VM V6 box.

    On subsequent visits to iPlayer it see the "waste of space" is back, so that was likely a glitch. The larger vertical tiles on one row remains though.

    And maybe it's my imagination, but the way the interface animates during navigation and locks seems different. I'm not fussed about the former, it's fluff and can potentially be irritating (it can be with some other streaming services), but the latter is a good thing. The screen positioning, where the navigation anchors to as you navigate, is important as if it does it in the wrong place you get cut-off segments and it can ruin any good work with other layout design choices.

    I really wish they'd move the Added Programmes area near the top on the TV App, having it at the bottom is bloomin' stupid, and the worst possible location aside from not having it on front screen at all, or having it at all.

  • @a516digital on Twitter has been combing through ITV's Results and there's some titbits for people who like numbers, with regards to Apps and Streaming Services.


    ITV Hub+ subs 452,000

    External Content twitter.com
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    Britbox UK subs 555,000

    External Content twitter.com
    Content embedded from external sources will not be displayed without your consent.
    Through the activation of external content, you agree that personal data may be transferred to third party platforms. We have provided more information on this in our privacy policy.

    Britbox subs Rest of World (my interpretation of tweet wording, maybe it includes UK figures) 2 million.

    External Content twitter.com
    Content embedded from external sources will not be displayed without your consent.
    Through the activation of external content, you agree that personal data may be transferred to third party platforms. We have provided more information on this in our privacy policy.

  • Thanks to a head's up on Cable Forum from RobboEdin about a post from BlueLou (a VM Staff Member) on VM Official Forums regards some VM TV360 Apps.

    All4 "will be available relatively soon" and YouTube Kids "should be available next week".

  • Good news there, but many will be waiting for Disney+, Discovery+ and Apple+. Hopefully, we won’t still be waiting this time next year!

    I do wonder whether VM are hoping for TV360 numbers to hit a certain proportion of TV customers so they only have to get the streamers to port their App to one box type.

    Discovery+ is several months into it's 12 month Sky exclusivity now, so if it's not available when that's up, that may be an indicator if it's coming at all. That deal stops it coming to likes of Roku too in UK, but it's available on Roku in other parts of the world, so I expect a flurry of platform launches in UK at that time.

    Apple+ came to a few other platforms recently, so they haven't stopped once the big, obvious platforms were done. Though Apple do go about things in odd ways e.g. not liking Debit cards.

  • Not strictly about Apps, but this BBC R&D Blog post , that was updated on August 13th, outlines how they are trying to get the best streaming performance for all users.

    They say they've only rolled it out to the Web Browser version of iPlayer at the moment, hence what I said at the start, but I can't think of any reason this won't end up being implemented in the BBC's various apps eventually.

    Higher quality video streams and improving adaptive bitrate reliability
    On intermittently fast internet connections, are players smart enough to switch quality when bandwidth changes?
    www.bbc.co.uk

    Sample quote "The most unexpected result, however, was the impact on quality of adding a 1080p50 representation when internet bandwidth was never high enough to let the player choose that representation. As noted above, you would assume that the presence or absence of 1080p50 video in this case wouldn't have any effect. But, in fact, it did: the mere presence of 1080p50 video in the set of available representations resulted in worse quality of experience than when it wasn't available – despite the player never actually selecting the 1080p50 representation, even for a moment. "

  • The Tennis Channel has launched in the UK.

    Tennis Channel streaming service launches in UK
    US-based Sinclair Broadcast Group’s Tennis Channel has launched in the UK as a paid-for streaming service. The Tennis Channel International streaming service…
    www.digitaltveurope.com

    How can I watch Tennis TV?


    HOW CAN I WATCH TENNIS TV?

    To watch Tennis TV you will need to buy a subscription. A subscription allows you to stream live tennis matches and all the replays, highlights and classics on Tennis TV.

    You can buy a monthly or an annual pass to Tennis TV.

    An annual pass lasts 12 months from the day you buy it.

    All our subscriptions are recurring, and will auto-renew unless cancelled.

    You can buy a subscription through the Tennis TV website (credit card, PayPal, direct debit in the UK), or via iTunes, Roku and Amazon (on Amazon Fire TV).

    Once you have a subscription you can log-in on any of the platforms listed below:-

    Some content, such as daily highlights, features, hot shots and post-match interviews, are available without a subscription on Tennis TV – check out our FEATURES CHANNEL to find the various subscription-free tennis videos.

  • They took their time, been around for a looooong time. They mentioned the UK Pro League in their Press Release and I was left thinking "but that's Free on that organisation's YouTube channel".

    And I didn't realise who their owners are, so I'm even less interested now. Shame.

  • I've never heard of the Sinclair Broadcast Group, why don't you like them?

    Their "news" spreads dangerous guff in US, their "local" news anchors aren't even allowed to think for themselves, if management has an opinion on something every anchor in every local area reads the same words verbatim across the whole country.

  • Britbox UK is finally on Roku.

    I'll see if there is a variance regards compatibility in devices (i.e. my older Roku doesn't support some apps, this could be one) and report later.

    I'd imagine this is on NowTV devices too as they're Roku-based.

    Source:

    BritBox UK launches on Roku | RXTV info
    The BritBox app has officially arrived on Roku streaming devices ahead of the new series of Spitting Image.
    rxtvinfo.com
  • Britbox UK is finally on Roku.

    I'll see if there is a variance regards compatibility in devices (i.e. my older Roku doesn't support some apps, this could be one) and report later.

    I'd imagine this is on NowTV devices too as they're Roku-based.

    Source:

    https://rxtvinfo.com/2021/britbox-uk-launches-on-roku

    Ok, I was able to Add the BritBox UK app on the oldest Roku, so it has wide compatibility. Not that surprising as I'd heard it's a rebadged ITV app.

    Can't comment on NowTV as the relatives I gave mine to won't be interested.

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