NOW TV Channels: Entertainment, Cinema & Sports Membership Channels

A NOW Membership gives you access to Sky TV channels like Sky Atlantic, Sky One, Sky Cinema & Sky Sports. Find out what you get with a NOW Membership.

In the UK, NOW (previously known as NOW TV) gives you access to the Sky TV channels online.

With a NOW Membership, you can stream live television channels along with on-demand box sets, movies and TV shows. This is all available through your internet connection, so there’s no need for a satellite dish. It’s different from Sky Stream in that there’s no need to have a special box to watch it – you can simply use an app on your compatible smart TV, console, mobile device, or PC.

In this article, we’ll look at what you’re able to watch using a NOW membership. This includes the NOW TV channel list for customers with an Entertainment Membership, Cinema Membership and Sports Membership. We’ll also look at the optional NOW Boost add-on and NOW’s compatible streaming devices.

NOW Entertainment Membership

If you have a NOW Entertainment Membership, you’ll be able to stream more than 300 box sets online. This includes the latest drama such as House of the Dragon, along with US comedy and Sky Original series (see the highlights here).

The NOW Entertainment membership also comes with more than 1,000 episodes of kids television included. This is available through the dedicated kids TV section of the NOW app.

Alongside the on-demand episodes and shows, you’ll also have access to the following live television channels through your NOW Entertainment membership:

Sky Entertainment Channels:

• Sky Showcase
• Sky Atlantic
• Sky Arts
• Sky Comedy
• Sky Crime
• Sky Documentaries
• Sky History
• Sky Max
• Sky Nature
• Sky Sci-Fi
• Sky Witness

Other Entertainment Channels:

• Alibi
• BSL Zone
• Comedy Central
• Gold
• MTV

Kids TV Channels:

• Boomerang
• Cartoonito
• Cartoon Network
• Nick Jr.
• Nicktoons
• Nickelodeon
• Sky Kids

Unlike on Sky Stream, you won’t get Netflix or Discovery+ included on a NOW Entertainment membership. For this reason, if you already subscribe to multiple streaming TV services, you may find it better overall value getting Sky Stream instead of NOW Entertainment.

The standard price of a NOW Entertainment membership is £9.99 per month, with the ability to cancel at any time. However, special offers are sometimes available which will reduce the price you pay when you sign up for a minimum term.

The NOW Entertainment Membership was previously known as the NOW TV Entertainment Pass.

NOW Cinema Membership

The NOW Cinema Membership allows you to stream more than 1,000 movies on-demand. Their catalogue includes award-winning movies like ‘Barbie’ and ‘Oppenheimer’, along with Sky Originals and classics from the past.

Alongside the on-demand streaming service, you’ll have access to the following 11 live Sky Cinema channels:

Cinema Channels:

• Sky Cinema Action
• Sky Cinema Animation
• Sky Cinema Comedy
• Sky Cinema Drama
• Sky Cinema Family
• Sky Cinema Greats
• Sky Cinema Hits
• Sky Cinema Premiere
• Sky Cinema Sci-Fi
• Sky Cinema Select
• Sky Cinema Thriller

From time-to-time, some of the Sky Cinema channels will be temporarily rebranded to focus on a certain season or event. For instance, there’s normally a Sky Cinema Christmas channel at the end of each year. They’ve also recently had dedicated channels for Harry Potter, Lord Of The Rings, musicals, feel good films, superheroes and more.

The standard price of a NOW Cinema membership is £9.99 per month. Unlike Sky Cinema customers on Sky Stream, you won’t get additional benefits like 2 free Vue cinema tickets each month, and an inclusive subscription to Paramount+. On the other hand, you can have a NOW Cinema membership without having Entertainment channels, which can save you a little bit of money.

NOW Sports Membership

A NOW Sports Membership allows you to watch the Sky Sports channels online. This includes Premier League football along with international cricket, golf, F1, tennis, and more. You can also stream more than 1,000 hours of sporting highlights and documentaries on-demand with your NOW Sports Membership.

The NOW Sports Membership gives you access to the following 11 Sky Sports channels:

Sport Channels:

• Sky Sports Main Event
• Sky Sports Premier League
• Sky Sports Football
• Sky Sports Cricket
• Sky Sports Golf
• Sky Sports F1
• Sky Sports Tennis
• Sky Sports Action
• Sky Sports Arena
• Sky Sports Racing
• Sky Sports Mix
• Sky Sports News

The standard price of a NOW Sports membership is £34.99 per month, or £14.99 for a one-day membership. For more information, see our guide on the cheapest way to get Sky Sports in the UK.

NOW Boost

For an extra £6 per month, you’ll be able to add the NOW Boost add-on. This gives you the following benefits:

• Full HD video quality: You’ll be able to stream in full HD quality (1080p) instead of normal HD (720p). This is available on all of the Sky Sports channels, along with selected shows and movies on the Entertainment and Cinema channels. In addition, the Sky Sports channels are available to watch at 50 frames per second (50fps) on supported devices.
• Surround sound: If you have a surround sound speaker system, you’ll get access to Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound with the NOW Boost.
• Stream on 3 devices: Normally, it’s only possible to stream from NOW on one device at a time. For customers with a NOW Boost add-on, this is increased to a maximum of 3 devices at the same time.
• Ad-free streaming: You’ll be able to stream on-demand movies and TV shows without any adverts. This doesn’t apply to live television channels which will still have advertising as normal.

How Do I Watch NOW TV?

With NOW, there’s no need for a satellite dish or for a cable connection. There’s also no need to have a special box (like you would on the Sky Stream service).

You’ll be able to access your NOW membership on a range of devices including your smart TV, games console, smartphone, tablet and laptop. A full list of compatible devices can be found on the NOW website:

TV:

• Amazon Fire TV Stick
• Apple TV
• Chromecast
• LG Smart TVs
• NOW TV Smart Stick
• Roku
• Samsung Smart TVs
• Sony Android TV
• TalkTalk TV
• Youview

Games Consoles:

• PS4
• PS5
• Xbox One
• Xbox Series X/S

Mobile Phones & Tablets:

• iOS (version 11.2+)
• Android (version 5.1+)

Laptops & PCs:

• Windows
• Mac

What’s the Difference Between NOW & Sky TV?

NOW was originally launched in 2012 as the online, streaming-only version of Sky TV. Nowadays, Sky’s TV service also uses streaming technology. As such, the difference between the two services has gradually been reduced.

As of today, customers on both Sky and NOW can get access to Sky’s premium TV channels. These include Sky Atlantic, Sky Witness, Sky Max, Sky Cinema and Sky Sports. However, there are some differences in the packages available and how you’re able to access them.

With Sky, you’re signing up to a fully-featured television experience. You’ll need to use either a Sky Stream box or a Sky Glass TV to watch all of your channels and content. As part of that, you’ll be using Sky’s television interface, along with the personalised recommendations and the remote control from Sky. As part of your Sky TV subscription, you’ll get both Netflix and Discovery+ included in the price, along with access to more than 150 live TV channels.

With NOW, you’re simply getting the paid-for channels from Sky. You’ll need to provide your own compatible hardware through which to watch those channels (such as a smart TV, games console, tablet, or laptop). You’ll be able to watch the Sky TV channels within your existing user interface – there’s no need to have a separate box from Sky.

One benefit when choosing NOW instead of Sky is the ability to get the Sky Cinema and Sky Sports channels, without getting the Sky Entertainment channels. This can save you a bit of money if you don’t watch Sky’s entertainment channels. On the other hand, you’ll miss out on the other customer benefits of Sky TV (e.g. the inclusive Netflix and Discovery+ subscriptions on Sky Stream).

More Information

For more information, please see the official NOW website.