When your IPTV EPG is not working, the fix is usually one of four things: refresh the guide, correct the time zone offset, make sure the guide source is set, or restart the app after an update. The EPG, or electronic programme guide, is the grid of what is on now and next. It comes from a separate source from the video, which is why channels can play while the guide is blank. This article explains where it comes from and how to repair it in the common apps.
In short
- The guide is separate from the picture, so one can fail while the other works.
- Refresh the guide first, then check the time zone offset.
- With Xtream Codes the guide usually loads itself; with M3U you may need a guide link.
- A wrong offset shows the right programmes at the wrong times.
What the guide is and where it comes from
An EPG is a data file of programme titles and times for each channel. Your app downloads it and matches each entry to a channel by an identifier. If the identifiers match, the grid fills in. If not, the channel plays with "No information". The guide is refreshed on a schedule, often every day or every few hours, and can be forced to refresh by hand.
Step 1: Refresh the guide
Open the app's settings and look for Update EPG, Refresh guide or a similar option, and run it. Wait a few minutes, since a large guide takes time to download. Restart the app and open the guide again. Many "no information" cases end here.
Step 2: Check the time zone
If programmes show at the wrong hour, the guide's time zone does not match yours. Look for a time zone, time shift or EPG offset setting, and set it to UK time, or to your local time if you live abroad. A one-hour shift is the usual sign, particularly after the clocks change. Some apps have an automatic option; if it fails, set a manual offset. The country pages give the clock differences for common destinations.
Step 3: Check the guide source
With an Xtream Codes log-in, the app fetches the guide from the same server automatically. With an M3U link alone, the guide may need its own address, an XMLTV link. Check your order message for one, and enter it where the app asks for an EPG or XMLTV source. If your order message has none, ask support whether a guide link is available for your log-in. If you can switch to Xtream Codes, do; see M3U, Xtream Codes or MAC.
How often the guide updates
Most services refresh the guide data once or twice a day, and apps fetch it on a schedule of their own. If you changed something and want it to show now, run the manual refresh and restart the app. If the guide still shows yesterday's schedule, the data on the server may not have updated yet, which no setting on your side can speed up.
Per-app notes
IPTV Smarters Pro. Look in Settings for the EPG options and for the time-shift setting. Clearing the app's data and signing in again forces a fresh download. See Smarters or TiviMate.
TiviMate. The playlist settings include EPG options: set the source to the provider's guide, run an update and, if needed, set a time shift. A channel with no matched guide can be mapped by hand.
IBO Player and similar. Use the app's refresh option, and make sure the playlist was added in full.
Any app. Update to the latest version, then clear the cache and try again.
Step 4: One channel or all?
If every channel has no information, the guide is not loading at all, so look at Steps 1 and 3. If only one channel is blank, its identifier may not match the guide. Note its name and tell support. Some channels are not covered by any guide, and showing a blank is how an app handles that.
Step 5: After an update or a panel change
Guides can break after an app update, a change on the provider's side or a change to your log-in. If it stopped after an update, reinstalling the app or re-entering the log-in often restores it. If it stopped for everyone on the service, support will know and can tell you when it is fixed.
Catch-up and recording depend on the guide
Catch-up links hang on the guide. If the guide is wrong, catch-up points at the wrong slot. After fixing the guide, check catch-up again; see catch-up, timeshift and recording.
What to send support
Tell support the app, the log-in type, whether all channels or only some are blank, whether the times are wrong or missing, and what you have tried. A screenshot of the guide helps. British IPTV's WhatsApp number is +33 7 74 02 33 33, open 9 am to 2 am UK time.
When the guide is right but the programme is wrong
Occasionally the guide shows a programme that is not on, or misses one that is. That comes from the guide data and not from your app. Note the channel, the time and what you saw, and tell support. A guide can be wrong for a while after a schedule change at the broadcaster.
Preventing it
Keep the app updated, set the offset once and leave it, and refresh the guide if you add a new playlist. Do not edit the playlist file by hand, since that breaks the identifiers that the guide relies on.