Google TV streamers get UK channels as Netflix gaming takes a hit

It’s the last Sunday of October, meaning it’s time for us to recount our winners and losers from the past week. 

Qualcomm unveiled its latest flagship chipset this week, marking a shift in branding from last year’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 to the Snapdragon 8 Elite. Insta360 released its newest GoPro-rivalling action camera, the Ace Pro 2, as LG showcased its latest range of AI washing machines. 

Astell and Kern announced its new SP3000M portable player, while Onyx updated its small-screen e-reader line with the Boox Palma 2. 

Looking forward, we saw our first glimpse of the OnePlus 13 in a leaked unboxing video, as Apple teased a week of Mac launches starting on Monday. 

Scroll down to learn who we named our winner and loser this week. 

Winner: Google

Google is this week’s winner as the company rolled out a major UK-centric update to its TV streaming devices, including Chromecast devices and the new Google TV Streamer. 

These devices have traditionally given users quick access to popular streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Disney Plus from one convenient place. Now, it seems the company is bringing broadcast networks into the fold with the addition of the Channels tab. 

Threads user @bmox81 spotted the update and shared a handful of photos on his feed, stating that the Channels tab is available on both the Google TV Streamer and Chromecast with Google TV in his home. 

Channels featured in the images include BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Three, BBC Four, BBC Scotland, BBC Alba, ITV 1, ITV 2, ITV 3, ITV 4, ITVBe, STV, S4C, Quest and Really. 

The Channels tab will make it possible for users who haven’t connected their TVs to a digital aerial to access terrestrial channels. Of course, the main advantage for Google is that users won’t have any need to leave the Google TV interface. 

Loser: Netflix 

Our loser this week is Netflix as rumours began circulating that the company was shutting down its big-budget game studio. 

According to a report by Game File, the game studio – known as ‘Blue’ – is no more. 

Blue was formed in 2022 with Overwatch executive producer Chacko Sonny, God of War art director Rafael Grassetti and Halo creative lead Joseph Staten brought on board. The latter described his new role at the time as “creative director for a brand-new AAA multiplatform game and original IP”. 

The studio was slated to be Netflix’s foray into developing its own high-end, AAA games. However, the studio seems to have collapsed before Netflix could launch its first AAA title. 

While Netflix has yet to officially announce that the company is shutting down, a company rep did confirm to Game File that Sonny, Grassetti and Staten have all left the studio, which certainly isn’t a positive sign given the reports.