As TV systems have become larger and more complex, there is an increasing need for tools to help wade through the confusion. As it stands, viewers are already drowning in choice.

In 2010, 300 new channels were launched in the EU, adding to the 9,000 linear channels already available. On top of this, smart TVs and STBs can now include thousands of VOD assets, hundreds of recorded shows, and even online video archives.

As a result, the way viewers browse and find TV content must evolve to match the user experiences they have grown to expect on their favourite iPhones, websites, and gaming systems.

10 years ago, the development cycle of the EPG was slow and steady: viewers expected to see a grid of upcoming TV shows and nothing more. But fast-forward to the present and the TV landscape is starting to change. With the birth of slick, intuitive interfaces like the iPhone, people’s expectations have been revolutionised.

Consumers are now used to the search capabilities of YouTube, the recommendation engines of Amazon, and the user interfaces of iPhone. Clearly, the EPG needs to move from a static grid to something intuitive and interactive, fitting into the iPhone generation’s expectations.

Today’s technology is supposed to be smooth, interactive, and personalised – all while responding to our every whim without a single error.

By comparison, many TV providers are not yet enabling viewers to search and navigate through content with the same degree of sophistication. Flick on your TV and chances are that you will be faced with the same basic EPG grid that hasn’t changed in years.

But this is all set to change. In the past year innovation in the TV space has started picking up pace; Web connectivity in STBs and TV has been quickly followed by the growth of rich, searchable programme data, the integration of social media and the rapid arrival of connected second screen. (you can read more about this topic in Red Bee’s latest white paper “The Content Discovery Revolution” by clicking here.)

So yes, the iPhone is already transforming the EPG – but what we end up with tomorrow remains to be seen.

What do you think the EPG will evolve into? How do you think viewers will discover new content over the coming years?