Channels & viewing

[SKeeton]

Hello!

TLDR: Youtube TV, Hulu+ Live, and FuboTV are not populating the built in Roku Live TV Channel / App.  The only channels that are showing up (which I was able to hide) are the free Roku Channels.  

I am new to Roku so I am pretty unfamiliar with the entire system.  I landed on a Roku Ultra because it was recommended by the folks at JubileeTV as having the most compatibility with that system.  

For reference - JubileeTV is a system that is designed for Senior Citizens that acts a "hub" which makes navigating TV, Video Chat, etc. much easier.  

My mother-in-law recently moved into assisted living and we decided to set-up JubileeTV with a Roku Ultra and either YouTube TV, Hulu+ Live, or FuboTV.  The reason why is that she cannot get an independent cable feed - it's set-up like an old college dorm, so the facility has one feed and everyone plugs into the wall. The local cable company does not offer cable boxes anymore, as they are 100% streaming.  As such, we needed to find a streaming TV service.

I installed YouTube TV, Hulu+ Live, and FuboTV Apps on free trials.  All of the apps work through the built in guide in the app.  However, none of these applications populate the Roku TV channel / app.  The only thing that populates in there are the free Roku channels.  I was able to hide these to reduce clutter for mother-in-law, however none of the paid apps populate into here.  

My mother-in-law is 86, and so we're trying to reduce the amount of navigation to get to a guide.  All of the native streaming apps start at a "Home" page, and you need to navigate to the Guide.  I like the Roku Live TV as it is just a TV guide.  

So my question is, how do I get these apps to feed into the Roku Live TV app?

Thanks!

[AvsGunnar · Accepted solution]

@SKeeton 

Generally, each channel/app will have their own Guide. (ie. need to launch the desired app and view the Guide from within there.)  They do not populate within the Roku Channel Live TV Guide currently.

The Roku Channel Live TV Guide is starting to populate some subscription channels/apps within their Guide though.  When in the Guide, scroll over to the left categories (ie, All Channels, Recents, Favorites, etc) and scroll down to "Add-ons".  (These are the ones currently implemented, but do not include any of the ones you mentioned).

[SKeeton]

Hi @AvsGunnar 

Thank you very much for the quick reply!  The problem with using the built-in apps, is that they do not launch into a guide directly.  Instead, they launch to the app "home" screen, which then requires additional clicks to get to the guide, which she struggles with.  

The device is currently at her place and I am unable to check.  What are the paid streaming tv options that will populate into the Roku Live TV app?

Thank you!

[AvsGunnar]

@SKeeton 

The ones that are in the Add-Ons include

• Paramount +
• Max
• AMC
• Starz
• MGM+
• BritBox
• Hallmark+
• Fox Nation
• Up Faith & Family
• Docurama
• Discovery+
• Curiosity
• AcornTV
• BET+
• BBC Select
• CrunchyRoll
• AllBlk
• VIX
• Shout! TV
• Kocowa
• Out TV
• Dove Channel
• Mhz Choice
• Sundance Now
• Grokker
• Magellan TV
• Inside Outside Home and Garden
• Discovery +
• DemandAfrica
• Retro Crush
• True Royalty
• Fuse +
• Get.factual
• Marquee TV

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There is a new "Instant Resume" feature some channels/apps are implementing. (not all).  When finished watching on some of these channels, if you press the Home button when you are finished, then they will either launch back to the last channel watched or into the Guide when you select the app the next time you watch them.  YoutubeTV is one of them.  I am unsure of Hulu and Fubo.

https://developer.roku.com/docs/developer-program/media-playback/instant-resume.md

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Roku can be a bit difficult for older users.  A lot of selecting apps and menus to get to desired content.  I usually place the most used apps on top of the screen in the first couple of rows. (just highlight the app on the Home Screen, press the asterisk (*) key on Roku remote, and select "Move App").

The Voice Remote Pro (version 1), also can help because it has two shortcut keys that can be programmed.  Otherwise, teaching older users to use the Voice Remote feature can also help a bit with launching apps.  Navigating around within the apps though can become confusing for some.

[SKeeton]

@AvsGunnar 

Thank you very much for the comprehensive list!

Roku Support -

If you see this post, it would be great if you incorporated paid tv streaming apps (i.e. YouTube TV, Hulu+ Live, Fubo TV, etc.) in to the Live TV application.  This would make it easier for older adults who are looking for that classic tv guide function.

[RokuJharra-Q]

@SKeeton 

Thanks for pointing this out! No worries—we’ve sent your feedback to the right team and will keep you in the loop as soon as we hear back from them. 

In the meantime, if you have any more questions or need anything else, just let us know!

Roku Community Team