Foxtel has denied that it rushed the release of its new iQ3 system due to the imminent launch of Netflix Australia, after users reported problems with the iQ3 set-top boxes.
Mumbrella reports that around 200,000 of the devices will need software upgrades, including 2,000 already shipped to customers who each paid $150 for the service.
Foxtel’s Director or Product, Mike Ivanchenko, said that there were “teething problems” with the new technology, but denied that the launch was brought forward due to the launch of Netflix in Australia last week.
“To hit it straight on the head categorically we would reject the notion that we have rushed this out,” Mr. Ivanchenko said
“It is true that in the first half of last week we did have teething issues activating the new platform nationally, which resulted in some of the initial customers not getting all the features activated or having old software delivered on the devices.”
iQ3 was originally scheduled for release last year, but was subject to repeated delays. In a surprise announcement, Foxtel released the devices on March 23, one day before Netflix launched in Australia.
iQ3 is primarily a recording device with one Terabyte of storage space, but also has the ability to stream the most recent 24 hours of Foxtel content online.
However, as it does not offer access to streaming services such as Presto (part-owned by Foxtel), it does not compete directly with Netflix.
