Sky has begun rolling out the biggest ever redesign to its Sky+ HD electronic programme guide (EPG) since the service was first introduced, in a response to how customers are changing their viewing habits away from live TV towards on-demand video.
First revealed back in January , the new-look EPG puts catch-up services and on-demand content on equal footing with live TV and recorded programmes. The Sky Store, On Demand and Catch up TV now sit alongside the Sky+ Planner and live channel listings on the home page, letting viewers quickly find their most-watched shows whether they are on a live channel or must be downloaded/streamed.
Search is now featured prominently on the EPG homepage. According to Sky over one million searches take place every single day on the current EPG, so the ability to search by actor, title, event, channel, sport or key word will likely come in very useful. It will return trending and recent suggestions from live channels, as well as Sky's own on-demand platforms.
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Luke Bradley-Jones, Sky's brand director of TV products, said “Our new Homepage means it’s now much easier to quickly find what you want, when you want to watch it - whether that’s the big Premier League clash or catching up on Game of Thrones. The new home page is a really important innovation, putting Sky+ at the heart of the connected home.”
The update began earlier this week and should be making its way to all eight million Sky+ HD customers by the end of May. We're still waiting for our set-top box to update, so don't panic if you haven't received it already. You'll also need to connect your box to your broadband connection in order to make the most of the new connected home page.
To coincide with the new look, the Sky+ app has also received a refresh, with a new homepage and new highlights carousel. It can also be used to turn on a Sky+ HD box remotely from a mobile or tablet.
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