Sky TV ‘down’ updates: Thousands ‘unable to access shows’ as viewers report mass outage
THOUSANDS of Sky TV customers have reported outages as they are unable to access shows.
More than 30,000 people have reported problems with Sky on the website Downdetector.
One customer wrote: "Mine [Sky box] says 'you can’t watch TV at the moment due to connectivity problem'.
"But my internet is fine and the box is connected.
"Has to be [a problem] at Sky's end."
Another had the same issue, writing: "Mines completely gone off, can’t get on the app. Can’t do nothing."
Read more on Sky
On Thursday evening there were 33,295 outages reported on the site.
The vast majority of complaints were over Sky's TV service, although a small number of people also had problems with the internet service.
And some customers even reported experiencing a total blackout.
Reminder: Sky TV outage
Here’s what we know so far:
- Over 30,000 users have reported outage around 10.30pm on Thursday evening
- Customers couldn’t access shows on TV on Sky Q box
- Sky issued a statement that the technical issue that caused the outage has been resolved yesterday morning
- Sky Glass and Sky stream services were not affected
- Some users are still experiencing the issue
- Customers have been advised to reboot their TV by unplugging it for 30 seconds
Top tips on how to stay connected
Here are some tips from Ofcom on how to improve your Wi-Fi connection and get more out of it:
- Use your landline or Wi-Fi calls:More people are making calls on their mobile network during the day, so you may find you get a more reliable connection using your landline or by turning on "wifi calling" in your settings.
- Move your router clear of other devices: Keep your router as far away as possible from other devices, such as cordless phones, baby monitors, TVs and monitors, as they can all affect your Wi-Fi if they’re too close to your router. Also, place your router on a table or shelf rather than on the floor, and keep it switched on.
- Lower the demands on your connection: The more devices attached to your wifi, the lower the speed you get. Devices like tablets and smartphones often work in the background, so try switching wifi reception off on these when you’re not using them.
- Try wired rather than wireless:For the best broadband speeds, use an Ethernet cable to connect your computer directly to your router rather than using Wi-FI.
- Plug your router directly into your main phone socket:Where possible, try not to use a telephone extension lead, as these can cause interference which could lower your speed.
- Test the speed on your broadband line: You can run a speed test using . If possible, carry out tests over a few days and see if there are any changes.
Sky customers left fuming over outages
Time to change your router password
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) compiled 20 of the most common passwords around.
Common passwords mean they're easy for cyber thieves to guess - so if you're using one of these on your router you might want to change it right now.
- 123456
- 123456789
- qwerty
- password
- 1111111
- 12345678
- abc123
- 1234567
- password1
- 12345
- 1234567890
- 123123
- 000000
- Iloveyou
- 1234
- 1q2w3e4r5t
- Qwertyuiop
- 123
- Monkey
- Dragon
Names, favourite football teams, musicians and fictional characters are also very popular and therefore easy to guess.
The best sort of password is long and easy to remember - so the NCSC suggests using three random words strung together.
Of course, you shouldn't recycle passwords on various platforms either. Should a hacker gain access to one they could then go onto access your other accounts.
So use a password manager to securely keep track of them all - Google Chrome and Safari can store these for you.
How do I contact Sky?
If you have been impacted by the outage then you should contact Sky directly to ask for compensation.
You can do this by phone, live chat, post or on social media.
Lisa Webb, Which? consumer law expert, said: "Understandably, some Sky customers will be incredibly frustrated that they still cannot access TV services after yesterday evening's outage.
"While some occasional technical difficulties may be unavoidable, customers should still be able to rely on the fact that a service they pay for will be provided.
"Sky also needs to provide affected customers with a simple route to claim any compensation they might be owed for being unable to access the service they paid for."
Tricks for your Sky remote
Try a whole host of Sky tricks to take your TV to a whole new level.
How do I check the service status of Sky?
You can or via the My Sky app.
To find out if you have problems in your area either use the online service checker or sign into the My Sky app.
You can also check how many outages have been reported on .
Sky customers speculate over cause of outages
Sky apologises to customers
Sky Help team posted on X to apologise to customers and share a handy tip to anyone still having trouble accessing their Sky services.
The customer support account wrote: "We’re sorry some customers had trouble accessing Sky Q last night."
The number of reported outages falls again
At 9:02pm there were 408 reported outages on DownDetector.
While the number remains above the baseline of 27, it is an improvement from earlier this evening.
Outages persist for some
While the majority of outages now seem to have been resolved problems persist for some customers.
At 6:46pm there were 575 reported outages on DownDetector, which remains above the baseline of 22.
Where are there still outages?
Outages reported over the past 24 hours are shown in this heat map.
The most reported locations are currently London, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Sheffield, Bristol, Southampton and Glasgow.
Tips from customers to resolve the issue
One Sky customer shared a handy tip to help those who are still having problems.
He suggested rebooting your Sky Q main box by unplugging it, and then re powering it after one minute.
You should then try doing the same for all Sky Q Mini boxes.
What problems are customers facing?
The majority of complaints are still over Sky's TV service.
A small number of people also had problems with the Internet service and some even reported experiencing a total blackout.
Outages persist for some
While the majority of outages now seem to have been resolved problems persist for some customers.
At 5:08pm there were 619 reported outages on DownDetector, which remains above the baseline of 20.
Top tips on how to stay connected
Here are some tips from Ofcom on how to improve your Wi-Fi connection and get more out of it:
- Use your landline or Wi-Fi calls:More people are making calls on their mobile network during the day, so you may find you get a more reliable connection using your landline or by turning on "wifi calling" in your settings.
- Move your router clear of other devices: Keep your router as far away as possible from other devices, such as cordless phones, baby monitors, TVs and monitors, as they can all affect your Wi-Fi if they’re too close to your router. Also, place your router on a table or shelf rather than on the floor, and keep it switched on.
- Lower the demands on your connection: The more devices attached to your wifi, the lower the speed you get. Devices like tablets and smartphones often work in the background, so try switching wifi reception off on these when you’re not using them.
- Try wired rather than wireless:For the best broadband speeds, use an Ethernet cable to connect your computer directly to your router rather than using Wi-FI.
- Plug your router directly into your main phone socket:Where possible, try not to use a telephone extension lead, as these can cause interference which could lower your speed.
- Test the speed on your broadband line: You can run a speed test using . If possible, carry out tests over a few days and see if there are any changes.
Tips from customers to resolve the issue
Some customers have reported that their Sky Q box is back in action this morning.
One user shared a helpful tip which helped reset the box and get it working.
They wrote: "I unplugged it overnight and plugged it back in this morning, and it has worked for over an hour now. Worth people at least trying this."
Another user agreed and said the same method has worked for them.
They added: "Came down this morning and my box was still unresponsive.
"So I unplugged it then let it do its business and it's worked so far this morning and fingers crossed not had a fit since."
How do I complain to Sky and am I entitled to compensation?
You could be entitled to compensation if your TV or internet goes down – but only if it’s for a certain length of time.
If you want to make a complaint to the Sky customer service team, they can be reached on 0333 7591 018. Help is also available online here.
If your service goes down then it’s worth asking for compensation – even if it doesn’t meet the requirements.
How do I check the service status of Sky?
Broadband issues are frustrating for customers as thousands of people continue to work from home.
You can monitor service issues online or via the My Sky app.
To find out if you have problems in your area either use the online service checker or sign into the My Sky app.
See our Sky outages guide for more information on how to check your service and if you're eligible for compensation.
A handy broadband speed guide
Knowing what speed you need your broadband to be can be difficult, but having the right speed for you is more important than ever.
With that in mind, here is a handy guide for broadband speeds:
- 0.5 megabits per second – Required broadband connection speed
- 1.5 megabits per second – Recommended broadband connection speed
- 3 megabits per second – Recommended for SD quality
- 5 megabits per second – Recommended for HD quality
- 25 megabits per second – Recommended for 4K quality
Sky TV outage - Recap
Here's what we know so far:
- Over 30,000 users have reported outage around 10.30pm yesterday
- Customers couldn't access shows on TV on Sky Q box
- Sky issued a statement that the technical issue that caused the outage has been resolved this morning
- Sky Glass and Sky stream services were not affected
- Some users are still experiencing the issue
- Customers have been advised to reboot their TV by unplugging it for 30 seconds
Sky's update on X
Sky has issued an update on their X, former Twitter, account regarding the persisting outage.
Customers have been advised to reboot their Sky Q boxes once again.
Outage persists for some
Some customers are still experiencing issues with their Sky Q box despite reports that the outage has been resolved.
Customers' fury over Sky's response
Customers took online to express their frustration after Sky released an update on the situation.
Many users have complained that the issue hasn't been resolved for them and disagreed with the standby mode explanation.
Sky responds
Sky has issued a response to concerned customers about the outage.
A Sky spokesperson told the Sun: “We’re sorry some customers had trouble accessing Sky Q last night. The issue was quickly resolved, and service has been restored.”
According to the company, a technical issue has caused Sky Q box to go into a standby mode.
Users should reset their boxes by switching them off and unplugging from a power socket for 30 seconds.
The Sky Q should be working as normal when switched back on.
