Mitchell & Brown Commits to Android TV Platform

Bolton-based British TV brand Mitchell & Brown has backed Google’s Android TV smart platform as the de facto operating system across its smart TVs into the future. The company has unveiled a trio of new near borderless 4K ‘KBL’ models running Android TV OS in time for the peak Christmas season and has committed to the Google platform going forward. The move puts Mitchell & Brown TVs on a level technology playing field with the likes of Sony, Philips, and Panasonic and gives the brand’s TVs a built-in app for Disney+ subscribers for the first time.

Despite stiff competition from several OEM smart TV operating systems, Mitchell & Brown Operations Director Dan Brown is convinced of the long-term future of the Google system.

“We evaluated all the available OEM smart TV operating platforms, and it was clear from the features and flexibility of the Android TV platform that it is the class-leader. Given Google’s financial might and commitment to ongoing development of its smart operating systems across various devices, it is difficult to see how Android TV won’t become the gold, and perhaps only, standard operating system for smart TVs in the future.”

Some of the biggest players in TV manufacturing have their own operating system, such as LG’s WebOS and Samsung’s Tizen, but even Tier 1 brands like Philips and Sony have adopted Google’s latest platform. In 2020 Panasonic also ditched its own Viera platform in favour of Android TV, putting Mitchell & Brown in very good company.

“I don’t see the big Korean TV brands adopting Android TV any time soon,” says Dan. “But for mid-tier manufacturers and smaller brands like ourselves, it makes a lot of sense to buy in the very best operating system from a specialist software brand. With Android TV rolling out across our smart TV range in 2022, our TVs will offer the same smart features and functionality of the top tier brands. This gives our retailers a strong, exclusively independent TV offering to compete with the big brands that are sold everywhere and often heavily discounted by the mass online merchants.”

The latest 2021 iteration of Android TV integrates Google Assistant for voice control, and the tile-based interface mimics the familiar mobile platform. The top row of the home screen is the Content Discovery Bar, which offers suggested content based on the user’s previous viewing habits and searches. The results are pulled from across broadcast TV and smart TV services, making for seamless integration of all available TV content. The platform also offers instant access to all the major streaming services, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, YouTube, NowTV, Disney+ and many more.

The new Android TV ‘KBL’ models cover the key 43”, 50” and 55” screen sizes and are available to retailers now. Mitchell & Brown will unveil its 2022 line up in Spring next year with the majority of its smart TVs featuring Android TV OS, and the final smart TV models moving to Google’s platform by Q3. Like every model in the Mitchell & Brown range, the new Android TVs will benefit from the company’s UK-based customer support call centre and a 7-year guarantee as standard.