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Foxtel refreshes iQ, adds Netflix access.

Pay TV & Streaming, together in the one place, as subscribers increase their On Demand viewing.

Netflix will be available to Foxtel iQ3 and iQ4 subscribers as part of a “New Experience” announced today by the Subscription TV giant.

A redesigned interface and more content are key features of the iQ refresh, as customers rapidly increase On Demand viewing, especially in Drama & Entertainment genres.

Netflix will be available starting from today for the iQ4, expected to be completed in August. The iQ3 roll out from September to November.

Key features:

 More on demand content than ever, including complete series box sets.
 Redesigned interface which simplifies discovering and navigating Foxtel’s 16,000 hours of TV on demand, just one-click away using the remote home button.
 Personalised recommendations for customers based on their viewing history.
 Integration of app-based streaming services starting with Netflix, the world’s largest video on demand streaming service. SBS On Demand will arrive in coming months.
 New Foxtel remote featuring a home button and a Netflix button.

Patrick Delany, Foxtel CEO said: “We want our customers to have the best of TV and on demand in Australia all in one place. With our new user interface, accessing Foxtel’s 16,000 hours of TV and on demand content is as simple for customers as one-click on the home button of their existing remote control.

“I can’t think of a better streaming partner to kick off The New Foxtel Experience than Netflix.

“The new customer interface puts two entertainment powerhouses together providing Foxtel customers with access to Netflix service alongside our Foxtel Originals and programs from HBO, FX, the BBC and more.

“More than 1.1 million iQ3 and iQ4 set top boxes are already installed in our customers’ homes. Starting today, The New Foxtel Experience simplifies the way iQ4 users can enjoy Foxtel’s incredible range of drama, sport and movies as well as the best of video on demand, with the experience coming to iQ3 users coming shortly after.

“So whether customers crave Wentworth or Orange is the New Black; Lambs of God or Stranger Things; Big Little Lies or The Crown, they will find it, and more, on Foxtel.”

Foxtel customers do not need to do anything to receive new features, with software updates  managed remotely over the coming months.

Netflix and apps access requires internet connected iQ3 or iQ4 (when available) and a Netflix subscription.

A six months Netflix subscription will be available free with $58 monthly Foxtel package of Drama & Sport. Current subscribers can also renew for 12 months to receive.

24 Responses

  1. As an oldie I hope the new remote is better designed/ more ergonomic than the one I was sent with the IQ4 box they sent when our old box died. This one has brought on arthritis in my hands – yes hands because the pain was so bad I had to start using my other hand. That box only lasted about 6 months before it died. Husband wennt to return old box (I live in regional queensland) & asked how many boxes they process a week. About 100. Why can’tthey get the technology right?

  2. I just forced the software update this morning. Yes, it looks great, I always get excited when a service upgrades their “look” and this one is fine. I now have 3 ways to access Netflix (Foxtel, App on the TV and through my 4K Blu Ray player). Yes Foxtel is expensive but will stick with it for a little longer. I hardly ever watch the “live” channels as I prefer to watch my dramas and lifestyle programmes through streaming (No ads!!).

  3. An extremely underwhelming announcement. If Foxtel think this is worthy of all the expense they went to for the “launch” of this then their problems are much larger than could be imagined. Overpriced, poor and very slow technology, bloated, full of ads and the Murdoch effect. They have massive problems and their profit result will keep getting worse and worse in the years to come unless they make some actual fundamental changes rather than just trying to use marketing to try and make people think they have.

  4. Like most Foxtel announcements in recent history this is more frustrating then it is exciting. When the IQ3 launched they tooted that they had Foxtel Tunes, Fox Sports News and Sky Weather apps and would expand on their offerings. All that actually happened was they closed down 2 of them and left the app draw covered in cobwebs. And after hinting at launch of adding third party apps as a future possibility, it’s taken them 4 years to actually do it when their market has already been cannibalized. So will I be happy to have these apps on my (third) IQ3, yes. Is it too little too late, maybe.
    See this article for reference on Foxtel’s previous app comments
    https://tvtonight.com.au/2015/03/foxtel-iq3-the-other-faqs.html

  5. Cool but this isn’t going to entice me to move from my iQ2. I’ve got a Telstra TV that can get onto Netflix, Amazon, my Plex and almost any other streaming service I might want to sign up for.

      1. The HBO deal doesn’t really matter anymore anyway. Game of Thrones has ended. And Westworld, while excellent, doesn’t hold the same sway with the masses.

        The only thing Foxtel have now is sport. And there are now other (better) ways to get that (Kayo). Luckily for Foxtel, they happen to own Kayo.

        1. Actually nearly all the best dramas on TV lately are on Foxtel. Chernobyl, Big Little Lies, Lambs of God, Euphoria, Fosse / Verdon, Gentleman Jack, Wentworth, Line of Duty. Not everything will be GoT watercooler but it does not diminish from the quality.

  6. This is hardly worth an announcement is it? Yes another way to access Netflix. I have I think 5 devices in my house that can access Netflix.

  7. Foxtel have been hinting at this commercial move for a while but wont explain why their Foxtel Now app will not get Netflix as well, Foxtel Now would be a more logical location for a Netflix app but of course that would make the future of their iQ3 or iQ4 4K boxes more ambiguous. Foxtel Now also needs an update too especially a better build Foxtel Now box, which leaves a lot to be desired compared with Apple TV (with better formats) or even Chromecast. The new Foxtel interface is mimicking Netflix but has no HDR10 which current generation TV’s provide for Netflix out of the box.

  8. Bit surprised that people expected Foxtel to add value, or offer free Netflix subscriptions. Foxtel has added Netflix to keep people within their ecosystem, plain and simple. It’s not intended to drive subscriptions – it’s to make is easier for people to switch back and forth.

    1. I agree with this. It sounds really good at first, but for existing customers it’s basically just an updated TV guide, there is no new content.
      And they aren’t even sending out new remotes

  9. So the IQ box just adds the Netflix app? Like every other streaming box/device already does… for the price they charge, they could have included a Netflix subscription as part of a Foxtel package surely.

    1. As the article above says, Netflix is integrated. They do offer a six month Netflix subscription for free for new or recontracting customers.

      For me, might take a while to get used to settings being the leftmost menu item rather than over on the right though.

      There’s information about the changes on the Foxtel website.

    1. For existing subscribers who already have a remote, the new remote will be free for people who’ve been Foxtel subscribers for 8 years or more, discounted for those 3 or over and full price for the rest. Seems you’d need to phone them to order one.

      As for the voice function – no way I’m talking to a remote.

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