Apple TV Gains New FXNOW Channel

[D.T.]

Yea...6 years in and I still don't get Apple TV. If I'm already paying for cable I'll just use their built-in On Demand service and DVR any show I want to watch at a later time.

Just don't get why I would pay $99 and take up more space in my TV stand for the same content I already pay for. Someone please enlighten me.

Well, the AppleTV provides other services, but even as a “cable anywhere” solution I like it better than the DVR and/or “whole home”. The UI is better/faster, the devices are tiny, there’s not additional monthly service fees for STBs, it unifies cable/iTunes/“local”/Hulu/Netflix into a single box.

We stopped recording Boardwalk Empire, we just catch it on HBOGO.

Dear Apple,

If we're going to be stuck with cable/satellite authentication required for the near term, how %!$#ing hard would it be to have a single sign-in capability on the TV???

Holy hell, now _that_ is a great (and seemingly simple to implement) idea. If I’m authorizing with DirecTV, let me auth that one time and apply to any service requesting authentication.

 

[upyourego]

The Apple Tv is an utter waste of time outside of the US - in the UK it doesn't even have the BBC iPlayer, ITV Player, 4OD and Demand Five - all on pretty much every other platform.

Fortunately I have purchased a LOT of TV and movies from Apple and have Netflix which means as a kitchen TV it is still fairly useful. But it needs Amazon Instant Video, the players I mentioned above and Now TV (not just sport) to even begin to compete with the other platforms.

 

[tadunne]

Are apple even aware that there are other countries in the world?! Where's the bbc I player, sky now TV channels?! And Amazon prime channels. Why they don't open it up and add a channel store is beyond me!? The bloody apple watch is getting 3rd party apps out of the gate. What is the problem here?!?
Stop waiting for some mythical media deal (that will likely only cover the US) that will reinvent what TV is?!? Release the apple TV app store and sell millions more
apple TV boxes?! Seriously?!

 

[alent1234]

I just don't get the benefit of all these channels that require cable authentication. If I wanted cable, I would just plug cable into my projector instead of my ATV. Just another useless icon to me.

Some of us dont watch netflix or hulu and the streaming apps are better than on demand cable

 

[Kabeyun]

Each one of these "new channel" announcements should yield a thread filled with NEW INTERFACE comments. So here it is:

Apple, change the ATV UI for goodness sake! Scrolling to the end of a long array of blocky icons is not working for us.

Thank you.

 

[mattopotamus]

I got rid of cable tv, all these channels that require a cable subscription are no good at all for me. When I did have cable I wouldn't watch it on the apple tv anyway, it was available on the cable box... the way these channels work is all wrong.

The problem with the cable providers "VOD" service is that it sucks. Usually the ATV version is easier to navigate. Also, the ATV version is usually 1080P and depending on the show/provider it may not be on VOD.

Does this also include FXX?

 

[2010mini]

I want a small monthly fee per channel with NO ADS! Netflix can do it.

Small monthly fee?!?? Roflol

 

[HarryKeogh]

Apple will introduce the new UI along with the new no-button remote.

 

[MrXiro]

Why bother ?

I don't understand the point of a channel being on the Apple TV if I need to get a cable subscription to watch it. Why not offer a subscription through the itunes store ?

My buddy who pays for cable gave me his account password... works for me!

 

[oneof52]

My provider doesn't participate, so a no-go for me.

 

[Popeye206]

Here's hoping Apple is building their inventory to eventually flip the switch where no cable subscription is needed.

I want a small monthly fee per channel with NO ADS! Netflix can do it.

This is what I want too… and what I think they are working towards once they have enough channels on-board.

 

[erinsarah]

Getting around FIOS basic plan?

I for one am looking forward to checking this out tonight, for one reason. When FXX came out I discovered FIOS doesn't carry it (at least in my area) at the lowest, cheapest tier. So dang it, I had to get off the couch without watching all twenty-two thousand episodes of the Simpsons. I wonder if this ATV channel will ignore that fact, and give me that same access to the Simpsons catalog?

By the way many thanks to the gripers on this thread because, as I read through the ranting I realized that I have basic FIOS boxes on two of my "lesser used" TVs along with ATVs, and there's really no point whatsoever of paying the couple of bucks monthly for those FIOS boxes because we never watch cable in those rooms.

 

[foxcub6]

What about us

Getting a it fed up with Apple not giving Apple TV owners in the UK anything of use on Apple TV, why is everything for the U.S. do they forget that other countries do buy there products too? BBC I player would be a start

 

[MrCornfed]

.

 

[johncocktosen]

yawn. like one of those cable channels we pay for in our monthly package and never watch? cool. this is going nowhere fast.

 

[OriginalMacRat]

Getting a it fed up with Apple not giving Apple TV owners in the UK anything of use on Apple TV, why is everything for the U.S. do they forget that other countries do buy there products too? BBC I player would be a start

The BBC would have to want to make an iPlayer for the AppleTV.

Apple can't force providers to support the Apple TV.

 

[NMBob]

Yea...6 years in and I still don't get Apple TV. If I'm already paying for cable I'll just use their built-in On Demand service and DVR any show I want to watch at a later time.

Just don't get why I would pay $99 and take up more space in my TV stand for the same content I already pay for. Someone please enlighten me.

You can't get any brighter. The only hope is that this is leading to something, or everyone ("they") is trying this out as a way to discover that it's not going to be popular, or maybe the cable companies are going to try to just do away with their own boxes (that's got to be kind of a headache for them).

 

[JackieInCo]

Some of us dont watch netflix or hulu and the streaming apps are better than on demand cable

Plus the ability to watch your iTunes movies and TV shows AND ripped DVDs, Blu-rays and other content. This was my main purpose in buying an ATV. Everything else is second.

 

[2010mini]

Yes! More content is a great thing!

Of late my family has been using these network apps to catch up on shows. The Apple TV ui is way better than my cable box's.

 

[JackieInCo]

When you go to the FoxNow site to authenticate, it doesn't show Comcast as a provider. Nevermind, it's Xfinity.

 

[xp0z3d]

Yes, Apple Tv could do much better with an Appstore of it own. But thats not looking very likely so far.
I still use my ATV3 everyday for a lot of hours, I use it for Plex, which is not straightway thing but it has worked flawlessly since starting and now I am completely reliant on it.

I am not cord cutter, I wish I was. But I still appreciate, ATV having all those apps for FOX, FX, HBO etc as I use them more than my Uverse DVR. I never watch live tv other than weekend EPL games and news. Also shows on Uverse just dont have that much audio quality and convenience for me as they have when streamed from ATV3.
So for us who are still having Cable, ATv3 is slowly replacing usual cable box, as I don`t like browsing there.

So far me it has been a worthy purchase since long and hopefully they can add NBC Live extra app. that would be icing on cake for people who watch EPL in USA.

 

[TrentS]

Useless.....

Again, I'll just watch it thru my cable. Why switch over to my Apple TV to watch it?

 

[RollTide1017]

Show does this new channel show up on the Apple TV 2 or is just for 3 owners like Beats Music was?

We cut the cable cord and we just use my sister's Uverse login for everything. If she ever cuts her cord, we're screwed.

 

[69Mustang]

Getting a it fed up with Apple not giving Apple TV owners in the UK anything of use on Apple TV, why is everything for the U.S. do they forget that other countries do buy there products too? BBC I player would be a start

This is not a criticism but a genuine curiosity. Inevitably, when the ATV is discussed, ATV owners outside of the US mention the dearth of content in their home country. I'm in the US so I genuinely don't know what's lacking outside of our borders. My question is why buy an ATV when there seems to be no useful content?

 

[charlituna]

Why bother ?

I don't understand the point of a channel being on the Apple TV if I need to get a cable subscription to watch it. Why not offer a subscription through the itunes store ?

Because they can't. It's tied up in the contracts with the cable companies.

Contracts which may be coming up for renewal, could be why starz and HBO are mumbling about investigating stand alone service