topic Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ? in Android TV

YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

SpookyZeus — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 10:39:36 GMT

Was reading about the YouView upgrade that they are rolling out but mentions that sony hasn't committed. Any one know anymore?

http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/139564-youview-unveils-new-faster-cleaner-tv-user-interface

Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

Anonymous — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 18:34:28 GMT

Hi there

News to me Trying to find more info about this.

Cheers

Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

royabrown — Sat, 03 Dec 2016 18:14:57 GMT

@SpookyZeus wrote:
Was reading about the YouView upgrade that they are rolling out but mentions that sony hasn't committed. Any one know anymore?

http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/139564-youview-unveils-new-faster-cleaner-tv-user-interface

I know a lot about the YouView upgrade which, as shown in the Pocket-Lint article, has gone from being essentially text-based, albeit with a few graphics, to being much more graphics-led in the new release.

And, perhaps more importantly for the future, has gone from Flash/Air to HTML5. All my experience of it is on the PVRs though; my Sony Android TV screen remains obdurately what it was before.

If the particular quote referenced above is to be believed, YouView have shown the new approach to Sony. Hard to believe they wouldn't have, though we will have to see how that assertion about Sony's reaction stands up.

But its impact on the Sony TVs would be limited to a bit of gussying-up of the EPG, an area that is still unavoidably text-based, so Sony perhaps wouldn't find it very compelling to shift to.

That Pocket Lint quote was a rare glimpse behind the scenes though - YouView don't generally talk about stuff like this. I wonder where it came from? But we can only wait and see what develops.

And please note the disclaimer:-

Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

Kuschelmonschter — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 06:13:54 GMT

If YouView decides to stop Flash, then Sony will have to do something about it. This alone might bring some stability and speed improvements. I wonder anyway who is developing the YouView app. Sony for sure wants to keep costs low.

Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

royabrown — Sat, 03 Dec 2016 18:05:42 GMT

@Kuschelmonschter wrote:
If YouView decides to stop Flash, then Sony will have to do something about it. This alone might bring some stability and speed improvements. I wonder anyway who is developing the YouView app. Sony for sure wants to keep costs low.

I don't know what the YouView code for the Sony TVs is written in - as a later development than the code for the YouView PVRs, it might already be HTML5 for all I know.

Do you have any insight here?

If it is not currently HTML5, then I would expect a NextGen (as it is called) version to run faster and with a smaller footprint.

But YouView, on a freshly Factory Reset Sony Android TV, runs as fast as anyone could really want, and I don't believe the subsequent slowdowns can be laid at the door of YouView, as we don't see these at all on the boxes.

The YouView interface for Sony TVs has been written in-house by the team at YouView; you can look up who and what YouView are on the web. I don't have the slightest insight into the exact commercial arrangement between the two companies, except that I expect that money changed hands, possibly is still changing hands, and I doubt that YouView paid Sony for the privilege of running on its TVs 🙂

Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

Kuschelmonschter — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 07:12:53 GMT

royabrown schrieb:

I don't know what the YouView code for the Sony TVs is written in - as a later development than the code for the YouView PVRs, it might already be HTML5 for all I know.

Do you have any insight here?

Not at all. But you might be right. Suppose Android TV has no support for flash anyway.

royabrown schrieb:

except that I expect that money changed hands, possibly is still changing hands, and I doubt that YouView paid Sony for the privilege of running on its TVs 🙂

For sure not. Otherwise YouView would have probably released it via the Google Play Store for all of Android TV.

Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

SpookyZeus — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 09:34:14 GMT

Thanks.

Sorry i got a little lost in all that, so do think this is something Sony isn't interested in or they can't do due to limited support on Android for either flash or HTML5?

Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

Kuschelmonschter — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 09:48:48 GMT

The only problem I can imagine right now (judging from what @royabrown wrote) is that Sony does not want to pay the money for the changes.

Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

royabrown — Sat, 03 Dec 2016 18:17:39 GMT

@SpookyZeus wrote:
Thanks.
Sorry i got a little lost in all that, so do think this is something Sony isn't interested in or they can't do due to limited support on Android for either flash or HTML5?

As I said, I don't actually know what code the YouView implementation for Sony is written in, just what the code for the boxes was written in (which is public information). But whatever code it is, it runs now, and will no doubt run with the new UI, should Sony decide to adopt it.

But all we know, if the Pocket-Lint article is to be believed, is that Sony are aware of the new UI, but have not committed either way. If so, you couldn't call them 'not interested'; though you could perhaps equally not call them 'raring to go' 🙂

Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

royabrown — Sat, 03 Dec 2016 18:09:36 GMT

@Kuschelmonschter wrote:
The only problem I can imagine right now (judging from what @royabrown wrote) is that Sony does not want to pay the money for the changes.

I could not draw that conclusion from what I wrote, so I don't know how you could 🙂

Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

Anonymous — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 20:13:29 GMT

Hi all

In avoiding speculating, I am trying to ascertain what Sony's intentions are on this. Unfortunately I have not got a proper answer to post as of yet.

Please be aware that YouView is only for people in the UK.

Thank you.

Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

royabrown — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 17:23:49 GMT

@Quinnicus wrote:
Hi all

In avoiding speculating, I am trying to ascertain what Sony's intentions are on this. Unfortunately I have not got a proper answer to post as of yet.

Please be aware that YouView is only for people in the UK.

Thank you.

Further insight, possibly, from this piece:-

"The only likely exception is Sony's smart TVs, as YouView says it is in discussions with the Japanese TV maker to ensure the update doesn't interfere with any existing library recordings or purchased content."

Hmmm....

Re: YouView upgrade, any word on if or when ?

kdombaz — Tue, 13 Dec 2016 13:16:15 GMT

Sony can drop youview and adopt Freeview Play and Freesat that would be soooo good. At the moment Satellite is just useless for me as there is no EPG with it