Like many I'm getting NOW tv no longer supported on this Device

[Anonymous User]

Like many with an LG TV I'm getting NOW TV no longer supported on this device, ? I recognise the tv is more than 5 years old. I've paid for a 3 month Sky Sports pass but obviously can't access it now so what's the solution? 

[RoyB]

@Anonymous User 

What is this ‘old plugin NowTV gear’ you mention, why are you apparently connecting both that and a stick, and what is it that is ‘no longer supported’?

Anyone who has regularly been using an old white NowTV box will have seen a message on the box that the service was ceasing, and there will have been two emails sent in September to the email address the subscriber is registered on.

So plenty of warning.

If the box was their sole device, they will have been offered a free stick; if it was a regular, but not sole, device, they will have been offered a discounted stick.

Reasons for not getting the email are:-

the user has not kept NowTV updated with their regular email address, and the email has gone to an old address, which the user may not regularly monitor, or even have access to, these days;

the user did not watch anything on a white box registered as one of their devices during the period the emails went out;

other.

In the case of ‘other’, users who have seen the onscreen message but not had the emails should contact Live Chat to arrange to get their replacement stick.

I’m sure I have a couple of white boxes stashed in the loft somewhere, as perhaps many of us do. NowTV have taken steps to distinguish active use from mere ownership, so that only white boxes still in active use in September would qualify.

[Anonymous User]

I have been using a stick but as that wasn't working tried the old white box although, obviously, not both at the same time!

You made no mention of the fact that I was trying to connect up to a 2020 Samsung, which is probably what is at fault. There seems to be a problem with nowtv having been removed from a number Samsung boxes.

What I want to know is how long will it be before it is fixed and who is at fault, nowtv or Samsung?

[nst]

@Anonymous User , @RoyB was just trying to help.

You seem messed  up yourself here.

1.  Plug a WHITE NowTV box into ANY tv... it wont work.  Its not the TV at all as im sure you'll understand... but the white NowTV box is obsolete and must be thrown away.

2.  Your NowTV stick.. well if that 'doesnt work' we'll take your word for that.  These things can get faulty I guess.

3.  Your 2020 Samsung TV may, or may not have its own builtin smart TV apps... one of which may include a NowTV app.   I have no idea on this as I dont have a Samsung TV.  I have a 2019 LG TV and the WebOS app that comes with the TV still works fine.

Any obsolescence of SmartTV apps seems to affect older models of some TVs where they no longer can develop or support the platform.  This is a common issue and how many years use you get from a built in app is going to depend on the TV.  I would suggest that you cant realistically expect more than a few years until the app is dropped and stops working.

Having said that I would be VERY surprised if a 2020 Samsung TV that had a previously working NowTV app suddenly stopped working a few months after purchasing the TV.

I strongly suggest you look at this page:

https://help.nowtv.com/article/what-devices-can-i-use-to-watch-now-tv

If you find that your in built app still isnt working then contact NowTV.  

My suggestion is that assuming your existing stick is broken.. and the white box is obsolete... just buy a new stick for £20 and that should see you through the next few years comfortably.

[RoyB]

@Anonymous User 

Just add a little more to @nst‘s excellent reply:-

Heres a picture of The Frame, showing the NowTV app in the row along the bottom:-

https://www.samsung.com/uk/lifestyle-tvs/the-frame/qled-technology/

So I don’t know what your difficulty with this is, exactly. Though it may be that the NowTV app isn’t preloaded, and you need to fetch it from the Samsung AppStore?

I’ve seen in a few places on the Community people seemingly thinking that if a TV doesn’t have NowTV as a smart app, then it won’t work from a Stick either. Or they have tried it anyway, and are surprised that it does work.

Its on a par with the confusion that if there is an app on the NowTV Stick, then you should be able to get that app from the NowTV app on your smart TV.

The first confusion is resolved by pointing out that what comes off the Stick is just an HDMI stream, and any TV with an HDMI port can handle that.

The second that the Stick has lots of separate apps, including the NowTV app. It remains to be seen if the rather peculiar attempt to nest all the other apps on a Stick under the NowTV app will add to this confusion in the future 😢

So what I want to know is what your difficulty is with getting the NowTV app, working, on your Frame, to see if we can help with that.

And also how come you think NowTV has been removed from some Samsung boxes recently; I know what has been recently sunset, and no Samsung TVs figured in that, just some LG TVs over six years old. On which, as described above, a Stick will still bring in NowTV perfectly.

[nst]

@Anonymous User 

Your original NowTV box... im assuming is the white one as being discussed in this thread (you dont make that clear).    It is obsolete.  Done.  No longer functional.

"still being told" well yes - it stopped working in August didnt it.. and it will "still" tell you this now and forever more.  Stop looking at it... it wont change its mind 🙂 

"whats going on" - well NowTV stopped supporting the Box in August.  This is a box thats long since been discontinued.  It originally cost peanuts as the current versions do.  It worked and was supported for years but ceased being sold a good few years ago.  There comes the time in all hardware where its not viable to keep it going in terms of software updates and support and these things do have a shelf life.

"all of a sudden" - well of course they set a date from which it was to be obsolete - this, I hear, was communicated well in advance to the white box users (as you can imagine) and the end date set for August.  Now... this is where its difficult for NowTV - as long as they can identify all the active white box users out there and have an up to date email address for them... of course they could and should have emailed everyone in advance warning them of this impending shutdown and giving them options.

The good news is as follows.  The white box is old.... very old... and has been superseded a couple of times however the current offering is the NowTV stick... and it is not expensive.  Buy it - replace the years old white box and consign it to the recycling bin... and if you contact NowTV they might even offer you an even better deal on a replacement stick. (I hear some people are being given them for free even)

Nothing here is sudden.. and in the world of technology you should half expect a set top box to have a limited working life - and given it cost about £20 in the first place and is easily replaced this shouldn't be too much of a hardship.

[Anonymous User]

We’ve brought a new Sony TV in the last two months and has worked on there till now? I also pay for sky sports for the GP which is in Sunday so now panicking 🙈🙈🙈 

[Anonymous User]

Hi KateyOwen1309....I contacted nowTV and was given a full refund for the weekly sports-pack because my tv wasn't supported.  They also sent a new Now TV stick (free of charge) and it works perfectly on my LG tv which is over 5 years old.  Other posts suggested the stick wouldn't work...but it does.  Hope this helps.  Nash-Toft.

[Anonymous User]

My TV is saying we're sorry now TV is no longer supported on this device. I only watch movies and entertainment channel. What can I do?

I NEED TO SPEAK WITH A PERSON NOT THAT SILLYBOT. 

[Anonymous User]

Hi,

 I also have this, which I’m ok with as technology evolves. The reason why I wanted to add to this feed is that I have the white box and was concerned about environmental impact and recycling. I have discovered that you can return your box to Now TV https://help.nowtv.com/article/can-i-return-my-old-now-tv-equipment who will recycle old equipment. Just thought I’d share this as I’m more concerned about wastage and environmental impact for the above scenario. 

Actually just to add a suggestion to this post. I think Now TV are missing a trick. If the message about ‘This device is no longer supported...’ was also followed by recycle your device by visiting our website here, and as a thank you we will send you a replacement stick Free of Charge, not only would Now TV be retaining customer loyalty, but they would also be clearly showing that as a business they are serious about their environmental impact....even better, if they know a device is not going to be compatible in the near future, start publicising this through messages to get customers on board with the transition, recycling their devices and offering a seamless experience. We all know technology changes. I think it’s about the way in which this is managed. Just a suggestion. 

Fi 

[nst]

@Anonymous User 

Thats a great suggestion.

Obsolescence is inevitable especially with such low end low cost devices as the NowTV box.  Its designed with a limited lifespan and that would never be beyond say 5 years.  £20 every 5 years is a bargain frankly.

Anyway, a lot of people have tech recycling collections at home or at the local recycling centre - which might be easier than boxing something up and sending it off.  However as you say the more can be encouraged to do this the better.

There seems in this thread to be a problem with some users not being told in advance that the box was about to become obsolete and cease to function.  Whereas im sure NowTV did what they could to pre-warn people well in advance that this was happening.. im sure that relies on them being able to accurately identify current users of the white box and have an up-to-date email address that they can use to contact people (and those people check their junk email folders of course).  A message on screen would have been a better idea as you say.

The reality here is that some people inevitably fall between the cracks.. and first thing they know is that their box "suddenly" stops working.  Good job the replacement is next to nothing cost-wise and easily done!