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Xbox gamers will need to pay for Sky Go Extra from July 29

Xbox 360 owners who use their console as a way to watch Sky TV content will have to pay for Sky Go Extra from July 29 onwards. 

Sky subscribers automatically get access to Sky Go – Sky’s on demand and catch-up service – on up to two devices, such as an iPhone or an Android tablet. 

If you want to access Sky Go on more devices you can pay an extra £5/month for Sky Go Extra, which lets you watch Sky Go on four devices. 

Paying for Extra: From July 29 you'll need to have Sky Go Extra to watch Sky TV on your Xbox 360
Paying for Extra: From July 29 you’ll need to have Sky Go Extra to watch Sky TV on your Xbox 360

A Sky spokesperson said: “Sky Go and Sky Go Extra mean our customers can watch their favourite Sky content on a broad range of devices, wherever they are. We will be making some changes to the way in which console users access Sky Go, and we will be writing to any customers who this affects over the coming weeks to update them.”
 
This news comes just as Microsoft removed the need for an Xbox Live Gold subscription in order to access streaming services. With the exception of BBC iPlayer, access to which is required to be free, the only way you could get things like Sky Go, Netflix and Now TV to work on your Xbox would be to fork out for a Live subscription. 

While this was no big deal for committed Xbox fans (who’d naturally shell out for Live Gold anyway) casual gamers understandably felt a bit miffed at having to essentially pay twice to watch the likes of Breaking Bad, Vikings and Game of Thrones on their consoles. 

Sky has yet to launch Sky Go on the Xbox One. Later this year Sky Go will launch on the last-gen PlayStation 3 as well as the current-gen PlayStation 4. 

Sky Go lets you watch 60 live TV channels (depending on your subscription) on iOS and Android devices. The oldest iOS devices supported at the iPhone 4, iPad 1 and iPod Touch 4th gen, so long as they’re running 5.1 or higher. 

Android phones running 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich or higher should be able to run Sky Go no problem, although some devices that have updated to 4.4 KitKat have reported issues with streaming live TV. Tablet owners will need to download a separate Sky Go app. 

Image: YuManNuMa/Flickr

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