Solving playback issues

[Brunell601]

I have at least two subscriptions that won’t play.  FrndlyTV TV and Power Nation.  Both these subscriptions are through Roku.  When I select them to play the screen goes dark for a second and returns to the APP.  I have tried all the updates for the apps and the system and nothing is working.  I can’t delete and reinstall because they are current subscriptions.  Both subscriptions play fine on my other Roku devices, just not the TV.  The software version on the TV is 10.5.0  build 421-ar.  The model of the TV is:7316X 100012587

[RokuMary-F]

Hi @ExprsCheapSkate,

Thanks for reaching out to the Roku community!

I'd be happy to take a closer look to see how we can help.

For this case, we recommend starting here to troubleshoot channel issues: Follow these steps in order:
1. Navigate to the channel tile on the Roku home screen, press the * key on your remote, and choose 'Remove channel'.
2. Next, restart your device from Settings>System>System restart. (For Roku TV Settings>System>Power>System restart)
3. Once your player/TV starts up again, go to 'Streaming Channels' on the Home screen, and add the channel back once more.

Note: If a subscription is cancelled before the end of the billing cycle, you can continue to access the channel until the current billing cycle ends.
You may also refer to this link: How to resolve a channel playback issue | Official Roku Support 

Please try doing this and see if it helps with what you're experiencing.
 

Best regards,
Mary

[makaiguy]

Re: Removing a Roku-subscribed channel so you can reinstall it

For a premium channel to which you subscribed through Roku, when you highlight the channel and press the * key on your remote, "Remove channel" will be replaced by "Manage subscription". Click this and follow the prompts to unsubscribe from this channel.  Now the ”Remove channel" menu item will be back and you can remove the channel.

Alternative is to log into your Roku account at https://my.roku.com/subscriptions and unsubscribe from there.

Either way, don't worry. All unsubscribing does is stop your subscription from renewing automatically when it expires.  You'll still have use of the subscription for the balance of your pre-paid subscription period. You can resubscribe when it runs out if you like.

[ExprsCheapSkate]

I did all those things.

Those actions did not result in an effective solution, but they were just short of the absolute most I could do as an owner of an inexpensive streaming device. (Stopped short of doing factory reset that would have scorched ALL apps and settings.) 

The problem has resolved as of Thursday mid-day, so the service interruption was at most, minor.

I have had my Express for 4.5 years or so, so I calculate uptime/reliability at more than 99.939%. That is about as good as anyone could expect for $40, especially if the root problem was a software problem with the streaming provider and not really even a Roku software problem.

Modern wonders in this Brave New World.

Thank you for your attention.