For those on the iOS platform that use the Sky+ mobile app to watch live television via their iPhone or iPod, you might like to know that the application has now received an update that now turns your iOS smartphone into a remote control, and following with offering the same features that were introduced to the Sky+ app for the iPad earlier.

With the update to the Sky+ app for the iPhone and iPod users can now take advantage of the application to change channels whilst viewing live TV, and can also use the app to play, pause and rewind TV with a tap or swipe.

Furthermore the updated Sky+ app now delivers complete access to a users Sky+ planner via their iOS smartphone so they can browse all their existing recordings on their Sky+HD set top box, along with the ability to set up and delete recordings on their planner.

Other useful features of the mobile app include the user being able to browse through an entire week’s TV via a user friendly TV Guide on their smartphone, remote record entire series or individual programmes when away from home.

The Sky+ app was launched back in 2009 and has been downloaded in excess of 5 million times since then, and on average attracts over 1.2 million unique users per month, and sits alongside several mobile apps that are available to Sky customers at no extra charge.

The brand director, TV products for Sky, Luke Bradley-Jones has said after receiving great feedback on these features that were introduced to the Sky+ app for the Apple iPad, we have now made them available to the iPhone, which is the ideal size to use as a remote control.

For those on the Android platform that also use the Sky+ app, these new features will also be coming to the Android version in the coming months.

Thus if you use the Sky+ app on your iPhone or iPod and haven’t yet grabbed the updated version, you can do so by downloading the updated app for free from iTunes.