Saturday, April 1, 2017

Roku UK Channel Store - Weekly RoundUp #212





Hi, everyone !!



For the long-time Roku users among you, with this post being made on the first day of April, it will probably come as no surprise for you to learn that Roku have (as in previous years) been up to their usual tricks in trying to catch us all out with an "April Fools' Day" prank. Typically, these have taken the form of a "new" product or feature being introduced to the Roku line-up. So, in case you missed this recent post from the "Official" Roku Stream Blog, here is a screenshot of their latest effort:-






If you haven't already guessed, from looking at the above screenshot image, the suggestion was that this "enhancement" to the Roku OS would help to satisfy our food cravings while binge-watching by suggesting the perfect snack to consume for whatever content you intended to watch. The interesting food pairings which resulted from this "April Fools' Day" prank can be seen in the image below:-




HINT:- Please CLICK on the above image TO ENLARGE IT for easier viewing !!


Of course, Roku are not the only ones to appreciate a bit of leg-pulling on "April Fools' Day" and even went as far as emailing customers about their "new" monthly pass for man's best friend:-





However, if you followed the link to the relevant post from the NowTV Blog, they were pretty quick to point out that it was an "April Fool" prank on their part and steer you towards their real passes. If those with 'NowTV' devices had invested a little more money upfront, they could take their pick from several Roku channels geared towards animal lovers keeping their pets entertained... however, it's good that NowTV did something to lighten the mood among users of their own-branded devices after dealing them the recent cruel blow of disabling Roku Developer Mode and (with it) removing any of the third-party apps that had been previously side-loaded onto NowTV Boxes using that method, like the 'PLEX' and 'FilmOn' channels favoured by many NowTV Box owners. Then again, come to think of it, there is still something slightly unsavoury about following news of something you can't have on NowTV boxes with an "April Fools" centred-on something you, erm... can't have on NowTV boxes! ;-)


Leaving me in a rather less jovial spirit was the revelation from 'TVPlayer' that, despite their previous suggestion the 'TVPlayer' app would launch on Roku UK by the end of March 2017 (i.e. Friday 31st) at the latest, they were still only "...getting there!!!" and merely hopeful "...it will be ready ASAP!". When I enquired as to whether the 'TVPlayer' channel had even been submitted yet, for "approval" by Roku prior to release via the channel store, there was no further comment - as evidenced below:-




AS BEFORE:- Please CLICK on the above image TO ENLARGE IT for easier viewing !!



Needless to say, I'm really keen to get access to the 'TVPlayer' service on my Roku devices... and, in particular, I'd like to subscribe to the 'TVPlayer Plus' package which, as we know from my last post published a week ago, will bring "at least 20 premium channels" for as little as £5.99 per month that (hopefully) should include access to both 'Eurosport 1' and 'Eurosport 2' on UK Roku devices for the very first time. It may also interest some of you who (like me) are considering a subscription to the paid 'TVPlayer Plus' package (once it does launch on Roku) that 'TVPlayer' has a promotion running, via their Twitter Feed: @TVPlayer, whereby new subscribers can enjoy their first month for free... as well as getting 50% OFF the cost of their second month (i.e. pay £2.99, instead of £5.99) simply by using the code: TWITTERTVP when registering for the service, as evidenced below:-






Depending on how much longer it takes for 'TVPlayer' to officially launch their Roku channel, I have it on good authority (having enquired as to the longevity of the above promotion) that, "...it may be" still available when 'TVPlayer' is (finally) released via the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store. That being the case... my advice to readers of this blog is to bookmark this post, or make a separate note of the promo code, so that if and when the time comes you are able to take advantage of the discount.


For the record... there is also an annual subscription option for 'TVPlayer Plus', priced at £59.99 for the year, which will give you the equivalent of two months free. You could also look at this in terms of an overall cost reduction per month to just £5.00 - which is pretty good value, especially if it does include both of the 'Eurosport' channels, considering you will get over 100 live-streaming channels in total. Should this option appeal to you, I have been advised by 'TVPlayer' that it's very easy to switch from the monthly subscription to paying annually... meaning, you can take advantage of the free trial and half-price second month (using the above promo code) to fully evaluate what you will be getting prior to committing to an annual payment plan with the added benefit of a further cost reduction! ;-) :-)


While we're still on the subject of 'TVPlayer', you may (or may not) be aware that they are closely connected with another company, called 'Simplestream', who are making big waves in the streaming / OTT cloud-based content delivery market. Bearing that in mind, it may interest you to learn that there was a recent news article, published earlier this week, by 'MultiChannel'... which revealed that there had been an agreement reached, between 'Simplestream' and MTG-owned 'Trace' (the urban music and entertainment global media group) to power the new subscription video on demand (SVOD), live TV and radio offering: 'TracePlay'. The reason I'm mentioning it is because the service is slated to come to additional devices including Roku, plus Amazon FireTV and Smart TV's later in 2017! :-)


When it does arrive, Roku users can expect live access to 10 music and sports TV channels, as well as 31 FM and digital urban music radios, plus a selection of urban series, films and documentaries in both English and French languages. The 'TracePlay' service has already been launched on desktop (Mac/PC), as well as iOS (Apple) plus Android mobile devices, and Apple TV... in the UK, France, Benelux, and USA, plus Africa, the Caribbean and Indian Ocean, and will be progressively available to the entire world over time. The 'TracePlay' service (currently) costs just £4.99 per month in UK, with initial pricing set at $4.99 USD for users in the United States, and I'd expect this to be the case when the Roku app is launched later this year. In the meantime, if you'd like to explore the service on one of the existing platforms, you'll find full details of the 'TracePlay' service on their website. Those wishing to connect with 'TracePlay' via social media will find them on Twitter: @TracePlayUK and, if you prefer, they also have an official FB page at:- TracePlay UK (Facebook) where I am sure they will be only too pleased to answer any questions you may have about their service.


In other Roku-related news... it was announced, via a press release from the Netflix Media Center, that the streaming giant had extended it's deal with Adam Sandler and will commit to finance the development and production of four more feature length films starring the successful comedian. Sandler’s Happy Madison Productions will produce each film, which will premiere exclusively to the leading internet entertainment network’s 93 million members worldwide. Sandler's first two Netflix films, The Ridiculous 6 and The Do-Over, are the biggest film releases for the service... while the prolific comedian’s latest feature film, "Sandy Wexler", is set to launch on 14th April 2017. The film is a fun, feel-good, romantic comedy set in Los Angeles in the 90's starring Academy Award and Grammy winner Jennifer Hudson, Kevin James, Terry Crews, Lamorne Morris, Nick Swardson, Rob Schneider, Jane Seymour and Grammy winner Aaron Neville among others. Fans of Adam Sandler should look out for these plus (at least) four more films from the comedian via the Netflix service! :-)


Of course, lately it seems that barely a week goes by without an announcement of some sort from the media centre at Netflix and, likewise, the same can be said of Amazon... who are, arguably, the main rival to Amazon in the global streaming marketplace. So, it will likely come as no surprise for you to learn that it has been revealed, via Business Wire, that Amazon has green-lit the Emmy-nominated All or Nothing, an Amazon Original Series produced by NFL Films, for a second season. This will give Amazon Prime members in the UK, Austria, Canada, Germany, Japan and Mexico, plus those in the USA full access to an NFL season unlike any that’s been captured on screen. Subscribers will get to see the Rams’ entire 2016 season, which began with their relocation back to Los Angeles and culminated with hiring a new head coach and preparations for the 2017 season.


The first season of All or Nothing, which followed the Arizona Cardinals throughout the 2015 season, currently has an average customer rating of 4.8, with 89% 5 star reviews, making it the highest-rated non-kids Amazon Original Series on Prime Video. Produced by NFL Films, All or Nothing: A Season with the Los Angeles Rams is executive produced by Ross Ketover (Hard Knocks, Inside the NFL), and Pat Kelleher (Hard Knocks, 30 for 30 - Four Falls of Buffalo). The showrunner is Keith Cossrow (A Football Life). Directors are Shannon Furman and Pat Harris. Supervising producer is Bennett Viseltear and senior producer is Nick Mascolo. For fans of the L.A. Rams and/or the NFL, plus American Football in general, this is one Amazon Original you won't want to miss on Roku! :-)


Meanwhile, as in other recent 'Weekly RoundUp' posts, I'm (again) going to ask you to refer back to the companion Twitter Feed: @ukrokuchannels for details of some special offers which may be of interest. If you missed it, the deal on 'Roku 2' [Model: 4205EU] which I've been sharing repeatedly for the past month is still available via Maplin at only £49.99 - which is equivalent to a saving of £20.00 on this UK Roku device - and well worth a look, if you're not interested in the additional features (private listening, motion control for gaming plus "point anywhere" WiFi Direct operation) provided by the enhanced Roku remote supplied with the flagship 'Roku 3' [Model: 4200EU]. I also posted details of access codes to some more private channels (again, available in all regions) among the bits & pieces shared via Twitter... so, as always, it's worth checking my tweets for extra treats! ;-)


Before I run through the new channels... a brief reminder that UK Roku users are still subject to restrictions (imposed by Roku) and (bizarrely) remain unable to access the channel descriptions from the web store on the Roku (USA) website. That said, the majority of text in those web listings can also be found within the individual descriptions from the built-in "Channel Store" (accessed via "Streaming Channels" from the main menu) on all Roku devices and, together with the associated screenshots (where available), should give a pretty good indication of what those channels are about.


My advice to any UK-based readers of this blog is to ignore the links below (and to the left of) each channel icon shown here and (instead) rely on the link to the right (below each channel icon) which (where available) will redirect you to an 'Roku Guide' review for additional details on that channel. As it stands, the links below (and to the left of) each icon are (currently) only of use to readers of this blog from the USA. This means that Roku users from the other "supported" regions of the world (i.e. Ireland, Canada, France and Mexico) are, like those of us in the UK, unable to browse the Roku Web Channel Store - which for now (at least) remains an exclusive privilege of Roku users in the USA. :-(


Hopefully Roku will (one day) wake-up to the fact that improving the experience for users in "other" Roku "regions" is just as important as it is for those who buy & use their products in the U.S. and denying access to the Roku website does not help the end-user experience for those of us (outside the USA) who wish to browse the web channel store. Meanwhile, that which Roku (apparently) doesn't want UK Roku users to see on their website (i.e. the list of new channels) is regularly summarised on this blog in my 'Weekly RoundUp' posts. So, without further ado, here's my 'Weekly RoundUp' of all the new Roku channels which were released between 26th March and 1st April 2017:-







GAYGOD.................................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "LIFESTYLE" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






GOLD LEAF CLASSIC MOVIES..........................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "FILM & TV" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






GRANDPA's FAVORITE MOVIES........................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "FILM & TV" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






BEAN BAG MOVIES.............................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "FILM & TV" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






REMOTE CONTROL MOVIE CLASSICS............................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "FILM & TV" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






ADMIT ONE............................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "FILM & TV" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






BAR BUZZ...............................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "FILM & TV" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






DRAMA............................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "FILM & TV" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






VIET TV NOW........................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "FILM & TV" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






CLASSIC MUSICALS............................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "FILM & TV" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






PING PONG FREE..................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "GAMES" in the Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






U - CARS....................................................COST: £0.69 (MONTHLY) [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "SCREENSAVERS" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN RELEASED***






EASTER SCREENSAVER..............COST: £0.69 (ONE-OFF PAYMENT) [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "SCREENSAVERS" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN RELEASED***






TEXT ADVENTURES............................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "GAMES" in the Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






GOLDEN AGE OF HOLLYWOOD........................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "FILM & TV" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***



N.B. CHANNEL ICON STILL TO FOLLOW - 
NOT AVAILABLE AT TIME OF PUBLISHING



CORNERSTONE NETWORK................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "RELIGIOUS" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






SEE SOUTH DAKOTA...........................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "TRAVEL" in the Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






PiPER......................................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "KIDS & FAMILY" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN RELEASED***






BONBON NETWORKS..........................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "LIFESTYLE" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






LUSH.................................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "LIFESTYLE" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






BODYTIME.............................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "SPORTS" in the Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






KIDSPRING............................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "RELIGIOUS" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






LIMITLESS EXP......................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "COMEDY" in the Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






BINGE WATCH CLASSIC MOVIES.....................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "FILM & TV" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***






AMERICAS GREATEST MOVIES AGAIN..........................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

***FILED UNDER: "FILM & TV" in Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***




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Anyhow, like it or not, that is your lot for this week but, while it only equates to just over two-thirds of the thirty-seven Roku channels which made it into the "Official" Roku USA Channel Store in the same time-frame, it's better to get 25 NEW CHANNELS than none at all... as I'm sure you'll agree?!


In any event, hopefully everyone in the UK with a Roku player managed to find something they like within the twenty-five "public" channels outlined above... or else from the "private" channels, whose access codes were "gifted" to you via the companion Twitter Feed: @ukrokuchannels to this blog, at various points throughout the last seven days. However, if you didn't find anything to add to your Roku channel selection from the assortment of channels on offer this week, you can always pay us a visit another time when, with any luck, there will be something more to your liking. After all, there's no point installing every channel because, like I say... when it comes to adding new channels to your Roku, IT'S YOUR CHOICE and, as with all things Roku... THE CHOICE IS ALWAYS YOURS!




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As mentioned previously, you can expect my usual summary of all the goings-on (or not) in the (severely restricted) Roku Channel Store (aka "App Store") that features on NowTV Boxes to follow in the near future. Meanwhile, whether you happen to own a Roku player, a NowTV Box, OR BOTH, as I do... be sure to check my earlier posts (as mentioned before) for all the new additions to the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store in each of the one hundred and thirty-eight preceding weeks and then come back again in seven days' time for my next 'Weekly RoundUp'. However, if you can't wait that long, remember you can always keep up with all the UK Roku action (as it happens) throughout the coming week, by following the companion Twitter Feed: @ukrokuchannels where up-to-the-minute info on all things Roku-related (here in the UK) is posted on a daily basis (well, almost).



Until the next time, then...



That's all folks !!





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