VodafoneTV STB - FreeviewPlus and/or Netflix

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mdf

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#173156 13-May-2015 12:33

I'm considering a VodafoneTV STB for one of the parental units (UFB is about to be connected).

Does anyone know (and if they do know, are able to share) if the VodafoneTV STB does or will (in not far off distant future) support either FreeviewPlus or Netflix?

While I'm at it, does VodafoneTV count towards a monthly data limit if delivered over UFB?

sbiddle

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#1304487 13-May-2015 13:06

While I don't work for Vodafone I'd say the chances of support for either of those is so close to 0% you may as well say it'll never happen. The STB is not a Freeview device and doesn't support DVB-T so has no way of supporting MHEG5 based applications (which Freeview Plus is).

UFB TV doesn't use your cap as it's not delivered over your internet connection, it's delivered over multicast on the UFB network.

dylanp

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#1304489 13-May-2015 13:10

The TV usage does not count towards your data cap. There is a FreeView option with Vodafone TV, but I'm not sure about FreeViewPlus.

http://www.vodafone.co.nz/tv/vodafone-tv/

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#1304499 13-May-2015 13:25

VodafoneDylan: The TV usage does not count towards your data cap. There is a FreeView option with Vodafone TV, but I'm not sure about FreeViewPlus.

http://www.vodafone.co.nz/tv/vodafone-tv/

Freeview with VF TV is not usually free - I pay $15pm for "fixed charges".

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sbiddle

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#1304540 13-May-2015 14:23

VodafoneDylan: The TV usage does not count towards your data cap. There is a FreeView option with Vodafone TV, but I'm not sure about FreeViewPlus.

Freeview Plus can't work because it's simply a middleware service (HbbTV) sitting on top of the Freeview product. While you include the Freeview channels, you don't actually offer the Freeview "service" as such which includes MHEG5 support and MHEG5 features such as the EPG, not HbbTV support.

mdf

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#1304557 13-May-2015 14:52

sbiddle: While I don't work for Vodafone I'd say the chances of support for either of those is so close to 0% you may as well say it'll never happen. The STB is not a Freeview device and doesn't support DVB-T so has no way of supporting MHEG5 based applications (which Freeview Plus is).

UFB TV doesn't use your cap as it's not delivered over your internet connection, it's delivered over multicast on the UFB network.

Awesome, thanks Steve, answers my query.

More out of curiosity that anything, how is the "plus" bit of Freeview Plus delivered? I thought it was essentially just TVNZ on demand and 3now. I saw a reference somewhere to an internet connection being required, so had assumed Freeview Plus was just a box capable of delivering those apps, with the data provided over the internet. But from context, it seems to be something else? Are the broadcast DVB-T signals involved?

sbiddle

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#1304718 13-May-2015 18:35

Freeview Plus is simply Freeview delivered over DVB-T, but the HbbTV middleware gives it interactive capability and can use the network connection for content.

Well over 50% of current Freeview devices all support MHEG5 IC which does exactly the same thing, and Freeview have demonstrated this on a number of occasions on the hope of getting providers such as TVNZ and Mediaworks on board. Nobody opted to go with this, and with HbbTV being a newer standard that improves on this significantly, Freeview opted to run with it.