Sky Q Soon To Support Spotify, Netflix and HDR Standards

• Sky Q will modify its interface to include Spotify.
• The streaming service will have a Special Subscription that integrates Netflix Content into its interface.
• It will now Support HDR, but the specific HDR format is not mentioned.

The British Satellite TV broadcaster SKY is revamping its premium Sky Q receiver with Spotify, Netflix and HDR support. Sky Q will support Spotify starting this spring in UK and Ireland. It will work like any other third party app and will be accessible directly from the Sky Q interface. All you Spotify songs and playlists will be at your direct disposal.

Next up is the Netflix integration. It will work like “a brand new Sky TV subscription pack” and will cost you the same as your regular Netflix subscription. This means your favorite Netflix shows like Stranger Things and Narcos will be readily available from the Sky Q interface. There will also be a Netflix Sky Q app through which you can access all of upcoming Netflix content as well.

Netflix is known for working alone, and it provides its own app for set-top boxes. Hence this new integration with Sky seems strange. As stated, Sky will integrate Netflix right next to its content in the Sky Q interface.

Besides all this, Sky Q will also come with a modified user interface and a homepage that lists recent recordings, favorite channels, as well as catch-up TV. The sports section is also modified and now will reflect the viewer’s beloved sports team, and so on. The voice functionality also received some improvement to provide better-personalized recommendations.

Again, as already stated, Sky Q will also get support for HDR. But it has not been specifically mentioned whether or not HDR will be limited to only movies or extend to live TV and Sports as well. There is also no mention of whether HDR will include HDR10, Dolby Vision, or HLG.

As you can see, a long list of software improvements is being implemented by Sky, all of which will take effect this spring. Nevertheless, it is surprising to consider that all this came along the same week as the $31 billion bid by Comcast to purchase the European Pay TV service. This clearly shows Comcast has the interest to gain acquisition over Sky and its 23 million subscriber base over Europe. No Doubt this spells trouble for Disney and their $52 billion deal to purchase a major chunk of 21st Century Fox.