"Google’s Android TV platform has now been deployed by more than 100 pay TV operators around the world, the technology’s top product manager told MCN Thursday.
According to Shalini Govil-Pai, senior director of product management for Android TV, the platform designed to provide access to over-the-top apps on digital video players, is now being used by “tens of millions” of consumers, primarily in Europe and Asia.
Govil-Pai said that around half of Android TV users are derived from the platform’s operator partners.
Related: Philo Launches on Android TV, Updates Apple Apps
The open Android TV platform allows operator subscribers to access the Google Play store for popular apps, including Netflix and YouTube, as well as more niche OTT services, such as virtual MVPD Philo, which just launched an app for the platform.
Adoption in the U.S. market is set to increase, with DirecTV launching a new slimline set-top for its now premium live-streaming service, a box that will be powered by Android TV. That device is currently in beta and set for wide-scale deployment in the middle of next year.
Meanwhile, U.S. video technology vendors, including Arris and Evolution Digital, continue to integrate Android TV into systems sold to U.S. operators. "
https://www.multichannel.com/news/android-tv-now-has-more-than-100-operator-partners
Meanwhile there is still ongoing fragmentation across Android TV OS devices:
If Google were really serious about being a competitor to Roku, Amazon and Apple they would:
- properly test external ATV devices during Certification for working surround Dolby Audio - if a device is Dolby licensed. Seriously the current situation is a bloody mess.
- properly test deinterlaced picture output quality if devices have an inbuilt TV Tuner.
- get serious about the their own Live Channels App and others like Google Play movies.
- actually talk to Netflix about some sort of "Netflix" approved stickers or Logos on their devices so user do not get confused and caught out when such support is missing from a device.
In the end it should not be about Android TV numbers, but the end Android TV user experience.
And for Android TV OS devices unless you spend decent $$$ on something like a Shield there are quite a number of compromises and Gotchas that users have to put up with.