Tuned In: A seamless subscription management experience
Tuned In: A seamless subscription management experience
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TL;DR
TL;DR
Sky Glass is Sky’s first fully-integrated smart TV that lets users subscribe to apps and manage their Sky package directly on the TV. The challenge was replacing the old Sky Q flow, where users had to switch to a phone or tablet.
The project delivered a TV-native, accessible subscription and management experience designed for remote navigation, readability at distance and technical constraints like card entry. Iterative usability testing shaped the flows and collaboration with engineers ensured feasibility.
The result: a seamless, all-in-one subscription experience that reduces friction, supports accessibility and is scalable for more apps and services in the future.
Sky Glass is Sky’s first fully-integrated smart TV that lets users subscribe to apps and manage their Sky package directly on the TV. The challenge was replacing the old Sky Q flow, where users had to switch to a phone or tablet.
The project delivered a TV-native, accessible subscription and management experience designed for remote navigation, readability at distance and technical constraints like card entry. Iterative usability testing shaped the flows and collaboration with engineers ensured feasibility.
The result: a seamless, all-in-one subscription experience that reduces friction, supports accessibility and is scalable for more apps and services in the future.
Sky Glass is Sky’s first fully-integrated smart TV that lets users subscribe to apps and manage their Sky package directly on the TV. The challenge was replacing the old Sky Q flow, where users had to switch to a phone or tablet.
The project delivered a TV-native, accessible subscription and management experience designed for remote navigation, readability at distance and technical constraints like card entry. Iterative usability testing shaped the flows and collaboration with engineers ensured feasibility.
The result: a seamless, all-in-one subscription experience that reduces friction, supports accessibility and is scalable for more apps and services in the future.
About sky
About sky
Sky* serves over 12.7 million TV subscribers in the UK. Sky pushes boundaries in content, streaming and smart home tech with products like Sky Q, Sky Glass and Sky Stream.
With over 95% of UK homes having smart TVs, users expect the same ease of control on their TVs as they do on a mobile.
"We made a TV with Sky inside!"
On 07.10.21 Sky introduced Sky Glass, their first fully integrated smart TV, allowing customers to be able to discover, subscribe to and manage app subscriptions and their Sky package directly through the TV interface.
*Part of Comcast, Sky is one of Europe's leading media and telecoms companies, offering TV, broadband and mobile services to over 23 million customers across six countries.
Sky* serves over 12.7 million TV subscribers in the UK. Sky pushes boundaries in content, streaming and smart home tech with products like Sky Q, Sky Glass and Sky Stream.
With over 95% of UK homes having smart TVs, users expect the same ease of control on their TVs as they do on a mobile.
"We made a TV with Sky inside!"
On 07.10.21 Sky introduced Sky Glass, their first fully integrated smart TV, allowing customers to be able to discover, subscribe to and manage app subscriptions and their Sky package directly through the TV interface.
*Part of Comcast, Sky is one of Europe's leading media and telecoms companies, offering TV, broadband and mobile services to over 23 million customers across six countries.
Role
Role
As the User Interface Designer, I led the UI and interaction design for the Sky Glass subscriptions experience, working closely with product, UX research and engineering.
My responsibilities included:
Designing end-to-end user flows
Creating TV-optimised layouts and components
Collaborating on accessibility and usability testing
Iterating designs based on research and technical constraints
Creating specs for hand-off
As the User Interface Designer, I led the UI and interaction design for the Sky Glass subscriptions experience, working closely with product, UX research and engineering.
My responsibilities included:
Designing end-to-end user flows
Creating TV-optimised layouts and components
Collaborating on accessibility and usability testing
Iterating designs based on research and technical constraints
Creating specs for hand-off
Challenge
Challenge
The existing experience on Sky Q* meant that customers had to complete subscription and manage their third-party apps on a separate device and contact customer service to manage their Sky Packs, which broke the experience.
The challenge was to design a seamless, TV-native experience that allowed users to discover, subscribe to and manage Sky packages and third-party app subscriptions i.e. Netflix, Disney+ along with their Sky package, directly through their Sky TV interface.
I worked on the end-to-end design of the subscriptions and management experience, ensuring it was intuitive, accessible and scalable across current and future services.
Designing for TV introduced additional complexity:
Interaction is remote-based, not touch-based
Users sit several feet from the screen
TV is often shared across households and age groups
Accessibility expectations are higher due to distance and context
The goal was to remove friction while respecting the unique constraints of the TV platform.
The existing experience on Sky Q* meant that customers had to complete subscription and manage their third-party apps on a separate device and contact customer service to manage their Sky Packs, which broke the experience.
The challenge was to design a seamless, TV-native experience that allowed users to discover, subscribe to and manage Sky packages and third-party app subscriptions i.e. Netflix, Disney+ along with their Sky package, directly through their Sky TV interface.
I worked on the end-to-end design of the subscriptions and management experience, ensuring it was intuitive, accessible and scalable across current and future services.
Designing for TV introduced additional complexity:
Interaction is remote-based, not touch-based
Users sit several feet from the screen
TV is often shared across households and age groups
Accessibility expectations are higher due to distance and context
The goal was to remove friction while respecting the unique constraints of the TV platform.
BEFORE
AFTER
APPROACH
APPROACH
TV-First by Design
Rather than adapting mobile or web patterns, the experience was designed specifically for TV. Layouts prioritised clarity, focus states,and predictable navigation paths using the remote. Content density was carefully controlled to reduce cognitive load and support relaxed, lean-back interaction.
A phased approach was taken to deliver this project. MVP for subscriptions coincided with the launch of Disney+ on Sky, next we built out app management flows, followed by Sky Packs management. The three scenarios that needed to be considered were; first subscriptions, subsequent subscriptions and no free trial.
Moderated testing revealed that what we had pretty solid foundation, however, there was room to improve the checkout screens. The focus was on:
Meeting WCAG guidelines and maintaining accessibility and clarity of content
Working with developers to overcome technical constraints on the card details input screen
These improvements led to a more balanced and improved checkout flow and overall experience.
TV-First by Design
Rather than adapting mobile or web patterns, the experience was designed specifically for TV. Layouts prioritised clarity, focus states,and predictable navigation paths using the remote. Content density was carefully controlled to reduce cognitive load and support relaxed, lean-back interaction.
A phased approach was taken to deliver this project. MVP for subscriptions coincided with the launch of Disney+ on Sky, next we built out app management flows, followed by Sky Packs management. The three scenarios that needed to be considered were; first subscriptions, subsequent subscriptions and no free trial.
Moderated testing revealed that what we had pretty solid foundation, however, there was room to improve the checkout screens. The focus was on:
Meeting WCAG guidelines and maintaining accessibility and clarity of content
Working with developers to overcome technical constraints on the card details input screen
These improvements led to a more balanced and improved checkout flow and overall experience.
Accessibility as a Foundation
With TV being a staple in most households and a medium that reaches people of all ages, abilities and contexts, accessibility in TV design is essential.
Designing with accessibility in mind ensures that everyone, including those with visual, auditory, motor or cognitive differences can independently enjoy, navigate and control their viewing experience.
It was for this reason that we specifically tested with a cohort of people with visual impairments. The insights allowed me to ensure I had considered:
Typography scale and spacing for readability at a distance
Consistent focus states
Consistent navigation patterns
Adaptable contrast settings for comfort (including high-contrast colour usage)
Accessibility as a Foundation
With TV being a staple in most households and a medium that reaches people of all ages, abilities and contexts, accessibility in TV design is essential.
Designing with accessibility in mind ensures that everyone, including those with visual, auditory, motor or cognitive differences can independently enjoy, navigate and control their viewing experience.
It was for this reason that we specifically tested with a cohort of people with visual impairments. The insights allowed me to ensure I had considered:
Typography scale and spacing for readability at a distance
Consistent focus states
Consistent navigation patterns
Adaptable contrast settings for comfort (including high-contrast colour usage)
Iterative Collaboration
Working closely with engineers and researchers, we validated designs through prototypes and usability testing. Early feedback highlighted friction around card entry, confirmation states, and error handling. These insights informed multiple iterations, balancing usability improvements with technical feasibility.
We ran a workshop with other designers using keyboards and forms in their flows and benchmarked against leading TV platforms i.e. Apple TV, Netflix and Prime Video, to ensure patterns felt familiar while remaining distinctly Sky.
It was important to keep stakeholders in the loop and reduce any impact to milestones and delivery. The most crucial things to consider were:
Ensuring clear focus states and navigation
Staying within the safe zone whilst maintaining spacing, hierarchy and considering error messaging
Allowing use of special characters
Allowing users to use their keyboard or remote to enter numbers
Iterative Collaboration
Working closely with engineers and researchers, we validated designs through prototypes and usability testing. Early feedback highlighted friction around card entry, confirmation states, and error handling. These insights informed multiple iterations, balancing usability improvements with technical feasibility.
We ran a workshop with other designers using keyboards and forms in their flows and benchmarked against leading TV platforms i.e. Apple TV, Netflix and Prime Video, to ensure patterns felt familiar while remaining distinctly Sky.
It was important to keep stakeholders in the loop and reduce any impact to milestones and delivery. The most crucial things to consider were:
Ensuring clear focus states and navigation
Staying within the safe zone whilst maintaining spacing, hierarchy and considering error messaging
Allowing use of special characters
Allowing users to use their keyboard or remote to enter numbers
BEFORE
AFTER
Exploration
Error messaging sits outside safe zone
Too tight between copy and place order CTA to move for something that isn’t always on screen
Doesn’t show a peak of the CTA to let customers know there is more information
Messaging also sits outside safe zone
Tight but remains within safe zone
Place order messaging should remain on the right as it’s always there
Error only shows when there’s an error
SOLUTION
SOLUTION
The final experience enabled users to manage their entire Sky ecosystem directly from the TV.
Users could:
Browse and discover available apps and packages
Subscribe to or upgrade packages in-context
Manage existing subscriptions without leaving the TV
The UI felt native to the platform, accessible from a distance and simple to navigate with a remote. Components were added to the design system to support future services, reducing the need for repeated redesign as Sky Glass expanded.
This led to:
Reduced reliance on secondary devices and customer support
Improved clarity and confidence in subscription management
Established accessibility standards for Sky Glass experiences
The final experience enabled users to manage their entire Sky ecosystem directly from the TV.
Users could:
Browse and discover available apps and packages
Subscribe to or upgrade packages in-context
Manage existing subscriptions without leaving the TV
The UI felt native to the platform, accessible from a distance and simple to navigate with a remote. Components were added to the design system to support future services, reducing the need for repeated redesign as Sky Glass expanded.
This led to:
Reduced reliance on secondary devices and customer support
Improved clarity and confidence in subscription management
Established accessibility standards for Sky Glass experiences
The final experience enabled users to manage their entire Sky ecosystem directly from the TV.
Users could:
Browse and discover available apps and packages
Subscribe to or upgrade packages in-context
Manage existing subscriptions without leaving the TV
The UI felt native to the platform, accessible from a distance and simple to navigate with a remote. Components were added to the design system to support future services, reducing the need for repeated redesign as Sky Glass expanded.
This led to:
Reduced reliance on secondary devices and customer support
Improved clarity and confidence in subscription management
Established accessibility standards for Sky Glass experiences
Let’s Collaborate
Let’s Collaborate
Get in touch if you have a project, questions or just want to chat.
Get in touch if you have a project, questions or just want to chat.
Copy email
Designed in Figma, built in Framer.
Designed in Figma, built in Framer.
Copyright 2025 Jayde-Olivia. All rights reserved.
Copyright 2025 Jayde-Olivia. All rights reserved.
Let’s Collaborate
Get in touch if you have a project, questions or just want to chat.
Copy email
Designed in Figma, built in Framer.
Copyright 2025 Jayde-Olivia. All rights reserved.