Chile’s VTR launches smart TV offering amid mounting debt woes

Chilean service provider VTR has launched a revamped TV offering dubbed TV Smart, bringing pay TV and streaming offerings together in one place.

The offering is Android TV-based like its predecessor NextGen TV, with boxes supplied by TiVo. The operator plans to roll the offering out to its base of over 400,000 subscribers by the end of this year.

TV Smart enables users to search for content, restart TV and to record content in the cloud. it also comes with voice control and includes a recommendation engine.

The offering includes access to streaming services including Netflix, Paramount+ and Universal+ via a single interface, as well as access to YouTube and TikTok.

Other services that TV Smart users can access include HBO Max, Crunchyroll, Disney and Star+.

“We wanted the customer to have all TV services via a single screen, with access to hundreds of channels and tens of streaming platforms, in a way that would be simple and very easy to use,” said Edwin Elberg, senior director of products at VTR.

The launch announcement comes at a difficult time for the Chilean operator, which merged with rival Claro at the end of last year and was deconsolidated by Liberty Latin America.

The operator has ramped up losses amidst a flight of subscribers, with revenues also falling substantially last year. Local analysts recently warned that the company is at risk of defaulting on its debts if VTR does not secure a fresh injection of capital.