What is the Virgin Media TV Anywhere App? Our Complete Guide To TV Anywhere

What is Virgin Media TV Anywhere?

Virgin TV Anywhere gives Virgin Media TV subscribers the ability to watch live and on demand TV on their phone, tablet or laptop. You can watch any channel that's included within your subscription. So, for example, if you have BT Sport you can watch live football on the go.

How do I get TV Anywhere and do I need a Virgin Media contract to get TV Anywhere?

To get Virgin Media TV Anywhere you do need a Virgin Media TV contract. All Virgin Media TV packages come bundled with Virgin TV Anywhere. If you don't currently have a Virgin Media TV package, TV Anywhere is not something you can pay for by itself like NOW TV. If you like the sound of Virgin Media TV and Broadband, take a look at our provider page for more information.

Can I watch Virgin Media TV Anywhere on my phone, tablet and laptop?

Virgin Media TV Anywhere can be accessed via PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad as well as Android phones and tablets. You can also access TV Anywhere with Amazon Kindle Fire tablets and Fire phones. However, TV Anywhere is not available on BlackBerry devices or on Windows Phone. Windows tablets, such as the Surface, can only be used for managing your TiVo box, not for watching TV on TV Anywhere.

To watch Virgin Media TV Anywhere on any device you will first need to set it up, which might need some work depending on what device you are using, and register your devices.

How can I set up and register my devices on Virgin TV Anywhere on my PC or Mac?

If you are going to use Virgin Media TV Anywhere for the first time on a PC or Mac, the initial setup of the service is pretty easy.

• Visit anywhere.virginmedia.com and sign in with your Virgin Media account ID. When you log into TV Anywhere for the first time, you will find it pretty familiar as the layout and interface is very similar to the Virgin Media TV and TiVo boxes.

• Once you've logged in you will have to register your device. You will only be able to register two devices in total to your Virgin Media account. You can delete devices from your device list to add new ones but you will only ever be able to have two devices running at the same time.

• Registering devices on Virgin Media TV Anywhere is simple. When you log in and try to watch something for the first time you will be prompted to register the device you are attempting to watch TV on. This prompt will appear in a new window and all you have to do is hit “register” and name the device, something like “bob's MacBook” or whatever you like.

• One thing to note is TV Anywhere is one of a dying breed on the internet in that it needs Adobe Flash to run and it isn't compatible with the Google Chrome browser. This is pretty irritating for most users and a source of consternation on the Virgin Media support forums. So you may need to visit get.adobe.com/flashplayer to use the service if you don't have flash installed on your PC or Mac.

• Once you have registered your device and installed flash if your PC or Mac needs it, you should be able to watch live TV using the menus on the TV Anywhere site. Just click on the programme you want to watch, hit play on the window and you are set.

How do I set up TV Anywhere on my phone or tablet?

Whether you are on iOS or Android, setting up Virgin Media TV Anywhere on a phone is very easy. However there are a few simple steps to go through before you can get watching live TV on your phone.

• Open the Google Play store or the Apple App Store and search for “Virgin Media TV Anywhere”.

• Download the Virgin TV Anywhere app. Once the app has finished downloading, tap to open it.

• Once you are in the app, enter your Virgin Media username and password. After you've done this you will be signed into the app and you'll be kept signed in. However, when updates to the app are pushed out, you'll most likely be signed out so be prepared to remember your password!

• Once you are into the app you should be able to watch live TV by tapping the appropriate programme and then tapping “watch now”.

How do I watch Sky Sports & Sky Cinema on Virgin TV Anywhere?

At the time of writing you cannot watch Sky Sports or Sky Cinema channels in the Virgin TV Anywhere app. This does not mean you can't watch channels you pay for on the go.

All you have to do is download the Sky Sports app if you are a sports subscriber and the Sky Cinema app if you are a Sky Cinema subscriber. Both of these apps have a login area for Virgin Media customers and all you have to do is type in your Virgin Media username and password.

Once you've done that you should be able to watch live TV and on demand programming for both channels.

How to set up access to Virgin TV Anywhere for everyone else in the house

Although you can only set up two devices to use Virgin TV Anywhere on your account, you can also set up accounts for other people in your household, so they can register their own devices. The process is very simple and you can set up other users by following these steps.

• Sign in to myvirginmedia.com

• Click “My Profile”

• Click “Manage Accounts”

• Click the “Change” text

You can only set up four separate other users for TV Anywhere on your Virgin Media account.

How to set parental controls for Virgin TV Anywhere

If you have set up sub-accounts for children in your household you'll be pleased to know that you can also set parental controls for TV Anywhere. Just follow the steps below and you'll be able to make sure that no one watches something that they are not supposed to watch!

• Sign in to myvirginmedia.com
• Click “My Profile”
• Click “Manage Accounts”
• You should see the users here that you have set up previously. Just click the one you want to change.
• Here you should be able to set the access level you want for the user.
• Click “Update”

How does Virgin TV Anywhere work with a TiVo box?

The TV Anywhere app on phones and tablets interacts with a TiVo box in a number of ways. You can set and manage recordings on your TiVo box and, depending on the phone or tablet you have, you can use your device as a remote control.

To do this you have to change some settings around on your TiVo box and on your device, so it can be a little complex. Luckily, we can guide you through it!

Before you can record shows through the app, you need to set up your device to act as a remote control.

How to set your phone or tablet as a remote control

Using your TiVo box go “home” then “Help & Settings” then “Settings” then “Network Remote Control”

Select “allow network based remote controls” and then follow the on-screen prompts.

Once you've done this you should be able to record TV shows when you are out and about. So if you've forgotten to set a series link but you've already left the house, don't worry!

How to use the TV Anywhere app to record programmes

Once you've set up your TiVo box and connected your phone to it, it is relatively simple to record your favourite TV shows. All you have to do is fire up the app, find the show you want to record and tap on it to see the programme description.

From this screen tap “Get this show” and then you can choose to record one episode or set up a Series Link+ to record every episode of the show going forward.

Recent updates now mean that you can use the TV Anywhere app to record shows even if you do not have a TiVo box. The procedure for picking out programmes in the app is the same, so if you follow the steps above you should be able to record all your favourite shows.

So there you have it. With TV Anywhere you should never miss the big game or that big series finale you've been looking forward to. If you need more information about Virgin Media, head over to our Virgin Media provider page for more information about tariffs and packages.

How does TV Anywhere work with the new Virgin TV V6 box?

Virgin has just released an all-new box designed to compete with Sky Q. The Virgin TV V6 box is powered by TiVo and the UI has a very similar look to the existing TiVo box, but technically it is far superior. With the V6 box you can record up to 6 shows at once, watch 4K Ultra HD content on Netflix (if you have a 4K TV) and you can stream recordings to other Virgin boxes in your home (which may require a Powerline adaptor).

Unsurprisingly, the new Virgin TV V6 box works hand in hand with Virgin's TV Anywhere service. With the V6 box you can stream your home recordings directly to your device that has the Virgin TV Anywhere app installed. Another good feature is that you can use your device as a remote control, and record shows on the move in the same way as the older TiVo boxes. You can also start watching a TV programme on your home V6 box and continue watching it via the TV Anywhere app on your phone or tablet.