Virgin Media TV Anywhere hits Android, brings Sky Go-crushing 67 channels

Virgin Media TV Anywhere hits Android, brings Sky Go-crushing 67 channels
Android owners, no longer TV Anywhere virgins

Virgin Media customers with Android phones are finally getting a little love from their television supplier, with the roll out of the TV Anywhere app commencing on Thursday.

The app, which is free to all Virgin Media TiVo customers, brings access to a whopping 67 channels over Wi-Fi, which crushes the selection available to Sky Go customers on iOS and Android.

However, despite waiting over a year for an launch following the iOS release in 2012, not all Android owners can jump on board today.

The staggered roll out only supports a pre-selected number of devices, including the HTC One, Google Nexus 7, 10 and some of the more recent Samsung Galaxy and Sony Xperia phones and tablets.

Not universal

In a Q&A on its website, Virgin said it is committed to optimising the experience for a launch on more Android devices, but admitted access will not be universal across the operating system due to device limitations.

"It's important for us to protect our content owners' rights and also to provide an excellent quality service. Some older Android devices will not allow us to this, and we prevent the device being installed or used on those devices. We do make changes to the list of supported devices regularly, so check back again if your device is not supported," the company wrote.

"If your Android mobile or tablet is fairly new, and is set to be a popular model in the UK, then there is a good chance that it will be added to our list of supported devices very soon. However, many older Android devices are not capable of providing a reasonable quality of streaming, and we will not be able to support these devices."

The company said phones on Android 4.4 KitKat may experience a few problems initially, but you can see the list of supported devices here.

Via Engadget

Chris Smith

A technology journalist, writer and videographer of many magazines and websites including T3, Gadget Magazine and TechRadar.com. He specializes in applications for smartphones, tablets and handheld devices, with bylines also at The Guardian, WIRED, Trusted Reviews and Wareable. Chris is also the podcast host for The Liverpool Way. As well as tech and football, Chris is a pop-punk fan and enjoys the art of wrasslin'.