After quietly announcing the removal a bunch of channels from the Foxtel Play streaming TV platform effective June, it seems more changes are coming and these may be met with a smile by many long suffering Foxtel Play customers.
As we foreshadowed in our reporting of the “farewell” of some 19 channels from the service effective early June, there is about to be some good news. Foxtel has scheduled an announcement event on June the 6th, but EFTM can report that both HD and Chromecast support appear certain in the new and updated Foxtel Play service.
EFTM has read the new customer Terms and Conditions for the Foxtel Play service which are “effective 7 June 2017” which reference these two significant changes.
On Chromecast – the T&C’s state “Except for a Chromecast stream, you can only use a Registered Device to access the Foxtel Play Service via its own downloaded and installed Foxtel Play Services Application.”
This is a huge leap forward, with Foxtel seemingly protecting it’s Cable and Satellite business by not allowing the use of the streaming service on a big screen or in great quality, which is where HD comes in.
Those same updated Terms and Conditions reference HD also: “In addition, there may be some technical limitations for customers who chose to access the Foxtel Play Service via older Devices. These limitations include the inability to use trick play functionality (such as pause, rewind, fast forward etc) on streamed programs and the unavailability of HD on all Devices”
While minor, the addition of HD and Chromecast to the terms and conditions is a clear sign of a change to the service, and we expect full details will be revealed in a little over a week from now.
Of course, Foxtel Play is available on a range of devices including mobile and tablet, but also on many other devices like Smart TVs, Games Consoles and Telstra TV (Which has already begun using HD streams for some channels)
The updated T&C’s do not give any indication that the service will radically change, with references to the existing packs and requirement to buy an entry pack before additional packs still in place.
We’ll know more in a little over a week – but for now, it seems a good move.
Trev is a Technology Commentator, Dad, Speaker and Rev Head.
He produces and hosts several popular podcasts, EFTM, Two Blokes Talking Tech, Two Blokes Talking Electric Cars, The Best Movies You’ve Never Seen, and the Private Feed. He is the resident tech expert for Triple M on radio across Australia, and is the resident Tech Expert on Channel 9’s Today Show and appears regularly on 9 News, A Current Affair and Sky News Early Edition.
Father of three, he is often found in his Man Cave.
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