BBC iPlayer missing since Android TV v8 update

[psellwood]

I recently upgraded my Sony KD-49XD8305 to Android TV v8 and, whilst everything else continues to work, BBC iPlayer has disappeared and is no longer visible in the App Store.

I can’t find anything else online mentioning this issue and can only think that iPlayer hasn’t been updated to work with the latest OS yet.

Is anyone else having this problem? Does anyone have a fix or workaround?

[royabrown2]

@Dalegilbert @HannahEd01 

This is a 2021 Sony TV, and none of the 2021 sets have the BBC, itv, All4 or My5 players, as Sony and Google are locked in battle negotiations with the broadcasters to get these.

Sony are saying they should get them before the year is out; a deadline still in the future, but many months have gone by since they first said this, with no apparent progress.

I recommend you get an Amazon FireStick while they are at their current Black Friday prices.

[Alistair100156]

I had the same problem. however you can access iPlayer by pressing the red button on the Sony remote that came with the TV. The only problem(?) is that you have to be tuned into a BBC HD channel for the red button to take you to iPlayer. Bit of an annoyance. But it does work for full access to the player. While you are there, chose the Beta version, as this allows UHD programs to show up.

[Dalegilbert]

Just tried. Red button does nothing when tuned into BBC1 HD.

[royabrown2]

@Alistair100156 

What model of Sony TV have you got that does this, as compared to @Dalegilbert ‘s KD43X81J?

[Alistair100156]

My Model is KD43XH8505

I just tune in to BBC 1 HD (ch 101) press the red button (not the big Google Play), wait a few seconds and the choice of FEATURED or iPLAYER is displayed. choose iplayer and wait for it to load.

[royabrown2]

@Alistair100156 @Dalegilbert 

Oh, that’s it then, different problems.

 @Alistair100156, you have a 2020 set, on which the Players should be present as individual apps you can choose, whether you are using YouView, aka Live & Catchup TV, or not.

And if they aren’t present in that way, even if you can get them with workarounds such as you describe, then you have an issue.

Whereas the people with 2018 and 2019 sets should be able to get the BBC iPlayer and My5 everywhere, but need to be on the ‘YouView side’ to get the itv Hub and All4.

Though whether, given all that, not being able to get the BBC iPlayer is the same issue, I cannot say.

But @Dalegilbert has a 2021 set, where the acknowledged issue is that Sony haven’t been able to provide any of the four Players yet, though they are promising that they should have them by the end of the year. Should….

[HannahEd01]

Hey Alistair100156, check this article about the BBC red button: https://www.sony.co.uk/electronics/support/articles/00257438

[HarshReality]

I see this still hasn't been resolved over a year later.

Now imagine you're an 80 year old who's been sold a TV on the basis that it's easy to use and watch everything. And the only way you can get basic features like iPlayer to work is to scour the internet and work your way through complicated solutions.

The cause of a lack of discipline in software development and QA. And the management thereof. This stuff is being developed by kids who've never been taught proper production quality software engineering. And the management who allow this to happen.

old people being sold that does not work. These should be ashamed of themselves

[royabrown2]

@HarshReality 

It’s completely resolved now.

Are you the ex-sweary 80 year old, or is this an aged parent or what?

And who claimed it was easy to use? A Sony Android TV would be a long way from my first choice of an easy to use TV.

I can’t even offer you any help here, or figure out why you think you can’t get the BBC iPlayer to work when it’s fully available, without knowing the model number of the TV we are talking about. Because what apps are on the set, and what you have to do to access them, has changed about three, possibly four, times since Sony Android TVs were first released in 2015.

But if you want ease of use, forget the UI on the TV, buy a £30 Roku Express, or a 4K one if you like, plug it into HDMI 1, and use that for the apps. All fully featured, clearly laid out on a grid in the very simple UI, no messing about, none.

And then you can take advantage of the unrivalled picture quality Sony offers, the sole saving grace of these sets, in my eyes.

[HarshReality]

It's not really fixed, the apps are still managed through YouView (on my model) and so they don't appear in the apps list. You can't therefore set them as favourite apps because they don't exist as apps.

These TVs are bit sold with the warning that they should be..

"This is a modern TV. It will not be as easy to use as your previous ones. At times things won't work and there is no support in those instances, instead you will need to search Google for answers and be able to discern valid sources of information. To make use of the information you may need to do further research to understand some of the fundamentals of how the Android Operating System works. Alternatively we anticipate that when you can't get it to work and don't understand why, nor how to resolve it, that you will likely simple purchase a new working set. That will have a similar warning attached."

The idea of having to use a separate device (which will also run on Android and be no less troublesome) is in fact just adding another layer of complexity.

These companies should be compelled to provide user support for their products. To reduce this cost they will then have to make the devices more reliable and easy to use, which is exactly what they should be doing.