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BBC iPlayer requires re-authentication every time I launch it.

5h33p
Community Member

2 weeks ago

I have a Google TV streamer running Android 14.01.  says it's up to date. Every time I have configured 7 streaming services which work fine but the BBC I player insists on me authenticating from scratch every time I launch it. According to BBC help it says I need to enable cookies but everything I can enable, is enabled. I have three BBC I player working seamlessly on about 6 android devices so I don't suspect the app.  Please help as my next action is to return the Google TV streamer as not fit for purpose. 

2 REPLIES 2

virnab
Community Specialist
Community Specialist

2 weeks ago

Hi 5h33p,

 

Thanks for reaching out to our community.

I understand that despite your Google TV Streamer (4K) running the latest Android 14.01 firmware, you are being forced to re-authenticate BBC iPlayer every time you open it. I appreciate the detailed information you provided, especially knowing the app works perfectly on your six other Android devices and that you’ve already checked your cookie settings. I'm happy to look into this for you.

Please answer the following questions to help me figure this out:

  • Is your BBC iPlayer account and Google TV Streamer being used in the UK?
  • Are you using the same BBC iPlayer account on other Android devices where the app works correctly?
  • Which version of the BBC iPlayer app is installed on the Google TV Streamer?
  • Does the app require you to sign in every time it is launched, or only after the device is restarted?
  • Are you signed out immediately after closing the app, or only when reopening it later?
  • Have you tried uninstalling and reinstalling the BBC iPlayer app?
  • Have you cleared the BBC iPlayer app’s cache and data?
  • Are you using a personal profile rather than a guest or restricted profile on the device?
  • Are any VPNs, ad blockers, custom DNS settings, or network-level filters enabled on the device or router?
  • Have you tested the app on a different network to see if the issue persists?
  • Is there enough internal storage available on the Google TV Streamer?
  • Have you performed a factory reset and installed only BBC iPlayer to check if the issue continues?

Please provide these details so we can proceed with more specific troubleshooting steps.

 

Best regards,

Virna

5h33p
Community Member
In response to virnab

2 weeks ago

Hi Virna,

Thank you  for looking at this.

Both my account and the google streamer are being used in the UK.

Yes I only have one BBC iPlayer account and I use it on all the other devices and the google streamer.

It's version 0.7.5_lyJCIe_eafb3f8930679_82993fb bbc.iplayer.android

Mostly every time the app is launched which I think is strange as it should still be running in the background if I use another app.  There have been about 5 times out of about seventy times when relaunching the app within a minute leads to the app displaying my profile and allowing me to login by selecting it.  I've only rebooted the box about five times and it hasn't worked after a restart.

Annoyingly at times I've relaunched the app and you see last screen flash by then it goes blank and eventually gets replaced by a menu offering either using the keyboard or a device to achieve the login.

I've uninstalled and re-installed the app twice and i've performed a factory reset on the google tv streamer.

I have cleared the cache, cleared the data and this leads as expected to the app prompting me to login.  So far it's always prompted the second time I login after clearing the cache/data which I didn't expect.

I'm using the full user profile which I've used for about six years on my other devices.

There are no vpn's or ad blockers running on the device - I've only just received it as a Christmas present and all I've done is to install and login to the streaming services I use.  My router is running as a simplistic wireless access point and I've not setup any filtering.  I've used the router in this config for about four years.

I haven't tested on a different network yet - I'll try this at the in-laws when i can.

iPlayer app says it's using 139 MB total

The system reports 26GB storage with 23GB available.

I have done a factory reset followed by a fresh install.  This prompted for me to authenticate at first re-install as expected but also on the second re-launch.  I'll try this again.  When I perform a factory reset does it reformat the storage?  Is there any chance that the app can find some corrupted environment in which to run?

I've also raised a case with the BBC who haven't yet responded.

Thanks for looking into this.

Regards

Des

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