Forget Android TV 15! Google has other plans

• Google is changing its update strategy for the TV platform Android TV
• Instead of an annual update, it will switch to a two-year cycle
• The next version will be Android TV 16

Google is preparing a significant change in the approach to updates of its television platform Android TV. According to available information, the company is about to switch to two-year cycle releasing new versions. In practice, this means that after this year Android TV 14 we won’t see another significant update until 2026, right in the version Android TV 16.

The reasons for this change are quite logical. Unlike smartphones, which most users change every two to three years, TVs have a significantly longer renewal cycle. When choosing a new TV, people mainly decide on screen size, panel quality and price, not on the version of the operating system. Also, TVs are primarily for content consumption, so there isn’t as much pressure to update features as often as with mobile devices.

Google reportedly announced this intention at its annual conference for Android TV development partners. However, when asked for an official statement, a company spokesperson said that they have nothing to say about the future release schedule yet. This is not the first time that Google has skipped a version – it has already decided before skip Android TV 13 and go straight to the current version 14.

As for what’s new in Android TV 16, we don’t have any concrete information yet. Most Android TV system apps are not part of the public AOSP source code, so we can’t even get a glimpse of the upcoming changes. So we will have to wait for the official announcement or the release of the developer version.

While Google needs to continually update the platform due to new features and regulatory requirements, a two-year cycle should be sufficient. It also means more time for TV manufacturers to prepare updates for their models.

What version of Android TV do you have?

Source: AndroidHeadlines, AndroidAuthority, Sharp