UK customers who have opted to take the upcoming Freesat Television service will be getting yet another little treat in the form of ITV’s catch up on demand service, the ITV Player.
Freesat viewers already have access to the hugely popular BBC iPlayer service on the boxes as well as the red button features that are normally associated with Sky and Virgin services, and now users will get access to the best and worst TV that the number three channel has to offer.
Unfortunately only customers with the Humax Foxsat-HD Freesat boxes will be able to access the service at the moment as the ITV Player comes to the EPG after a Beta trial.
ITV Player is a Video on Demand and catch-up TV service that allows users to view programming from the ITV range of channels including ITV1, ITV2, ITV3 and ITV4 as well as some STV and territorial services. The main use for the service is a good ol’ catch-up of soaps and for those who like your women orange, checking out the latest happenings in Essex.
For the service to work, ITV Player is on channel 903 on the Foxsat-HD Freesat boxes and the units will need to have a constant broadband internet connection at a decent speed to stream the information directly to the TV.
Freesat MD Emma Scott said: “The launch of ITV Player on Freesat is another important landmark for us. It’s fantastic that we can now offer viewers the two biggest catch-up TV services, direct to their TVs.
“This is a further example of innovation that focuses on adding value to the viewer – making it easier to find and enjoy the TV they love, for free. Whether it be catching up on the events in Weatherfield or following the Rugby World Cup, Freesat customers can now enjoy the best of ITV schedules, whenever they want.”
FreeSat seem to be moving at a rapid pace with Free HD, BBC iPlayer, ITV Player and a large range of channels so this can only be a good thing for the service… unless Project Canvas’s YouView takes over!