TV NOW is a video portal of RTL Mediengruppe, which is operated by RTL interactive. It was founded in January 2007 with RTLnow. Until March 2016, the portal was known as nowtv.de. The renaming of the video-on-demand platform took place on March 1, 2016. The platform continues to contain individual sections on the various channels of the RTL media group.
In January 2007 the portal RTLnow was founded, from this point on it was possible to watch series and films that were broadcast by the television station RTL even after they had been broadcast. The portals of the other RTL Mediengruppe stations followed successively. The names of the platforms consist of the name of the television station and the English word “now”, which means the same as now.
In 2010, RTL Mediengruppe released an app for RTLnow for mobile devices and tablets, followed by apps for RTL2now and VOXnow in 2013. Since 2012, the content has also been available via the HD+ Replay of HD+ via HbbTV, which is subject to a fee.
How it works
Many films and series, such as Germany sucht den Superstar, Alles was zählt, Alarm für Cobra 11 – Die Autobahnpolizei or Verdachtsfälle, can be watched free of charge for seven days after they have been broadcast, and some selected content can also be viewed over a longer period or permanently. After the expiration of the time individual episodes or films can be bought for a fee and be regarded thereby 24 hours long as often as desired. In order to watch such episodes, a free registration and the deposit of payment data is necessary. Free offers can be viewed without registration.
Similar to other video-on-demand platforms such as Maxdome, it is also possible to book a so-called package for all series and feature films at TV NOW (TV NOW PLUS). Some subscriptions and packages are available, as well as individual downloads. You can pay at TV NOW by direct debit, ClickandBuy, PayPal, Sofortüberweisung, credit card, Paysafecard, in the form of a valid voucher code or by mobile phone. If the user pays by mobile phone, a payment code will be sent to him via his mobile phone provider. After entry in the mask provided for this purpose, the amount is deducted from the next mobile phone bill or directly from the prepaid credit.
With the output I am a star – get me out of here! In 2014, record values were achieved on all platforms of the Media Group RTL Germany (TV, Video-on-Demand, RTLnow, RTL INSIDE). With 27.4 million video views, the quota of the previous year was exceeded by 25 percent.
The free offers are financed by video advertising, which is shown before, during and after the actual content. Users of ad blockers are excluded by technical measures and cannot view the content until the ad blocker is deactivated.
Technical
The videos are offered via video streaming. For access via mobile devices, however, a mobile app is required. In order to use the service via set-top boxes or smart TVs, the HD+, HD+ Replay service, which is subject to a charge, is required.
The general technical prerequisite for reception is an Internet connection with a data transmission rate of at least 768 kbit/s download. For reception via a computer, at least 1.6 GHz processor power, 512 MB RAM and 128 MB graphics memory are specified. Internet Explorer Version 11 or higher, Mozilla Firefox Version 40 or higher, Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge and Apple Safari are supported as browsers.
Geo-IP blocking limits access to some content for users from Germany.
For legal reasons, the programmes will be equipped with a Digital Rights Management System (DRM). Under Linux operating systems such as openSUSE, the Flash Player installed on TV NOW will therefore not work. Although the advertisement is played before the clip, the programme actually requested is not.
Trivia
The fact that “tvnow.de/rtl” – the area for the RTL programme – can also be reached via the domain “rtl-nau.de” is responsible for rumours that the phonetic spelling for “now”, i.e. the “nau”, was created especially for RTL viewers who do not speak English. In fact, this is also possible with other TV stations on TV NOW and otherwise also widely distributed on the Internet, as it is a surfing aid.