Revealed: TalkTalk building ‘completely new’ mobile TV service to rival Sky and BT – exclusive
TalkTalk is working on a brand new “mobile TV content service” to rival Sky and BT, TrustedReviews can exclusively reveal.
The telecoms giant is recruiting customers to meet with its designers at the company’s Farringdon office in London, to “get involved in the first stage of a completely new product”.
TalkTalk already has two different TV player apps for smartphones, but neither has been particularly successful. This redoubling of efforts could be a last-ditch attempt for TalkTalk to better compete with more successful rivals like Sky and BT on mobile. In a note intended for TalkTalk customers and seen by TrustedReviews, TalkTalk wrote:
“Many of you have helped us out with our latest release of TalkTalk TV and we are so grateful, it really paid off! On the back of this success, we would like to invite TalkTalk customers to get involved in the first stage of a completely new product.
The note continued: “We are looking for customers who have TalkTalk broadband and watch video from services like Netflix and Amazon using mobile devices such as a smartphone, tablet or personal computer. Having TalkTalk TV is a plus but not required.”
What’s interesting is that the note was signed off by “Davide”, who we can confirm is Davide Turi, Senior Product Manager for TV at TalkTalk. Turi joined the business in April 2016, after spending nearly three years at Sky as Senior Product Manager for Sky Q – Sky’s latest suite of set-top boxes and services. His LinkedIn profile describes his role on the Sky Q project as “end-to-end”.
According to a source with knowledge of the matter, Turi is working on a new “mobile TV content service”, although it’s not clear exactly what that entails.
One possible scenario is that TalkTalk plans to overhaul its ailing mobile app ecosystem. Back in February 2015, TalkTalk launched the TV2Go app, in a bid to take on Sky Go. But the iOS and Android versions of that app haven’t been updated in nearly two years, and have user review scores of 1/5 and 2/5 respectively.
TalkTalk also has a TalkTalk TV Player app available on both iOS and Android, both of which were updated late last year. And while these apps have fared a little better, they still haven’t been rated fantastically by users, with the Android version getting 3.5/5, and the latest version of the iOS app getting 2/5.
Speaking to TrustedReviews, a TalkTalk spokesperson said: “As we continue to invest in enhancing our TalkTalk TV offering we are developing a number of innovations. To ensure customers are at the centre of our product experience, we consult them as part of the development process.”
The spokesperson added: “We’re not able to share any further info on the product at the moment.”
It’s important to note, however, that just because TalkTalk is developing a new mobile TV service doesn’t necessarily mean that the project will see the light of day.
Related: Why you should upgrade to Sky Q
Watch: Best Smartphone 2016
What’s your favourite mobile media app? Let us know in the comments.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
