A number of new content providers, including Sky’s NOW TV and Sky Store, S4C, Quest and, most recently, Netflix have joined YouView since it launched in 2012.
To date new player apps have been added in the order of arrival, but research commissioned by the platform shows this has left some apps lower down the list than users would expect.
Most notably, the popular Netflix service is currently the last of 12 apps on the service, occupying the final slot on the second page of the on-demand section, despite user testing showing customers would expect to find it on the first page.
YouView says it will continue to reserve the first four for catch-up apps from the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Five.
The fifth slot will be allocated either to apps from BT and TalkTalk in homes which subscribe to their services, to additional PSB apps such as ITV Player in Scotland where the STV app would sit next to iPayer, or to the most popular commercial, non-PSB app where neither an ISP or additional PSB app was present.
The changes would promote Netflix to the top non-PSB/ISP slot, with Sky’s NOW TV sitting alongside it, with all other slots allocated according to popularity.
The consultation is available online and runs until 5pm on Monday 8 December 2014.
