What Is EPG and How Do You Fix an Empty Guide?
·4 min read
EPG stands for Electronic Programme Guide: what is on each channel now and what comes next. In the app it appears as a timeline beside the channel list, and catch-up works through it as well.
If the times are shifted
This is the most common complaint and the cause is nearly always the same: the time zone. Check the EPG time shift or timezone setting in the app. For Turkish channels that is UTC+3. The device's own clock has to be right too.
If the EPG is completely empty
- Download the list again: refresh the playlist from the app's settings.
- Add an EPG source by hand: it usually arrives automatically with an Xtream login, but an M3U setup may need a separate EPG address.
- Try another app: some players cannot read certain EPG formats.
Some channels have it, others do not
That is normal. EPG data arrives per channel and no source exists for every one of them. Local and smaller channels in particular often come without schedule data — it says nothing about the quality of the stream.
The first EPG download can take half a minute. On a large list, wait before closing and reopening the app; an interrupted download is what leaves the guide empty.
What is the guide actually for?
- You see what is playing without opening the channel.
- You can plan the evening in advance.
- Catch-up works through it: you scroll back to a past programme and open it.
- In apps with recording, scheduled recordings are set up from the guide.
Where the setting lives, by app
| App | Path |
|---|---|
| TiviMate | Settings > EPG > Time shift |
| IPTV Smarters | Settings > EPG / Time format |
| XCIPTV | Settings > EPG settings |
How long the download takes
On a large list the EPG data can run to a few megabytes and the first download can take half a minute. Closing the app during it leaves the data half written and the guide looks empty. Wait it out once after setup.
When the channel names do not match
Sometimes the EPG data is there but lands on the wrong channel. The cause is a mismatch in the channel identifier (tvg-id) between the list and the EPG source. That is not something to fix at your end — report it and the mapping gets corrected on the server.
