Any one use Now TV?

Murdoch sold Sky to Comcast in 2018. NOW is effectively a deal between Sky and BT to share programming. I believe it was initially set up so that Sky customers could watch sports events that BT had the rights to and vice versa. The NOW app is Sky content without the contract.

The convenience of apps is that most don't have a contract so you can start and stop them without penalty. I agree you have to keep an eye on costs. Consider cancelling those you aren't getting much use out of as you can always start them again once there is enough new content to interest you.

It isn't that technical once you get the hang of how apps work and gives you access to a much wider variety of programming than the free-to-air channels offer.

They provide an alternate way of seeing things that pre-Covid I would have gone to see at the cinema, theatre and live music venues. Not the same excitement as a live performance or a big screen showing but safer for me.

We have Now in fact we have everything except SKY (DH is ideologically opposed to Rupert Murdoch don't ask!) from BT but seriously considering to dump some things as costs keep going up and the number of things we actually watch goes down. We have a couple of serials on the go at anyone time at the moment its COBRA, Finding Anna something about a political Scandal- can rarely find anything on terrestrial channels now.

You’re all so technical, all I want is broadband, phone and a free view tv.

Teacheranne

It sounds like all you need is a new broadband supplier and to buy a recording device. If your TV does not have integrated Freeview Play consider buying a recorder which does.

This what hi-fi article explains more. It is two years old so more models will have been added to what was available then.

www.whathifi.com/advice/freeview-play-what-it-how-can-you-get-it

I have a Humax FVP-5000T which I am happy with.

Humax boxes are good. They are very easy to operate, and allow you to record from Freeview as well as access apps. They don't tie you to anything, but don't provide broadband.

If I cancel my Virgin contract then I will need to find a new broadband provider as well. I had not heard of Now TV until I started doing my research so got a bit confused I think!

I do only watch the main terrestrial tv channels, not bothered about the extra sport or cinema channels really.

I record a lot of programmes, either because of clashes with other programmes or because I am out. I prefer recording them to watching or Catch Up as it’s quicker to find what I want to watch on the recording device and I often keep them for longer than they are available on catch up.

So I am paying a huge amount to Virgin to get the internet and to record programmes which seems a waste of money. I think I need to look at the cost of buying a separate recording device and getting a broadband/phone contract. It looks as if I will lose the content of the tivo box if I end the contract - I’ll have to see how much is still available on catch up!

Thanks to your advice, you have made it clearer for me.

You say you have a smart tv teacheranne. You can add the Now TV app to your home screen. I got rid of Sky TV several years ago and have a humax box for freesat.
I don't bother recording anything these days. The catch-up services show you the series and you just pick up where you left off.
All I pay for now is the tv license and Amazon prime video.

Teacheranne

I want to understand why you are thinking about getting NOW if you only watch the main “terrestial” channels. When you say terrestial, do you mean the free-to-air digital channels? Are you looking at a NOW broadband package which includes Entertanment?

This is the current Virgin Media channel guide:

www.virginmedia.com/virgin-tv-edit/tips-and-tricks/virgin-tv-channel-guide

NOW is a digital app which gives access to Sky channels plus a few others. I can see that all of the channels are already available through Virgin depending on what package you have. Most of the channels in the Virgin Entertainment and Factual & Lifestyle sections (excluding Sky) are free-to-air.

Do you mean you’d like to start watching the Sky channels via NOW if you can save some money by cancelling Virgin?

Otherwise, If you are happy with free-to-air channels then you should still be able to watch those channels once the aerial is reconnected.

If you prefer to record free-to-air programmes rather than use OnDemand services then you will need a new recording device. Manhattan or Humax are popular brands. You cannot record Sky channels via NOW. That’s live TV or OnDemand only.

Virgin may ask you to return the TiVo box depending on what model it is. If they don't want it back, I can’t say whether it will still play back without subscription to Virgin. It may depend on how the saved content is encoded. You could try disconnecting the input cable which brings the service into your home and testing if you can still play back.

If you have a smart TV but have been watching via the Virgin interface you may not realise what On Demand features your TV offers. Some of the recorded programmes you may lose if you have to return the box or can no longer play back might still be available on BBC IPlayer, ITV Hub, All4, My5 or UKTVPlay. Have you looked at those apps on your smart TV to see if the programmes you like to record are there?

If you switch to BT OpenReach for landline and broadband (I think you do need a BT Open Reach line for NOW) you will get six months Britbox free which is mostly BBC and ITV content.

Apologies if I am telling you things you already know only I read your post as if you are thinking of NOW as an “all-in” replacement service similar to Virgin but via broadband rather than cable and it isn’t.

Eighteen months ago, I cancelled Sky after twenty years. I bought a smart TV and a Humax recorder and now subscribe to a selection of apps including NOW to supplement the free-to-air channels. It’s a different way of managing the way I watch TV but it was an easy transition.

I am by no means an expert on these things. There are a myriad of ways to access TV services now and the way I do it it just one of them.

I have Now TV upstairs, as there is no aerial socket up there and it was easier.

I can't answer all of your questions, but no, you don't need an aerial . You don't even need a smart TV, so long as it has a usb port.

You can't record from it, but you can get all the catchup channels, so you may not need to. You can also get Sky Atlantic and Sky Arts, which are about the only Sky channels I watch, but there are others included in the Entertainment package, which is the cheapest, and the one I have. You can pay more to get Movies and Sport if you want those.

Mine is very much a back-up for when I can't sleep, but I am happy with it - oh, and you can stop and start it at any time as there is no contract.