- If other apps on the same TV also fail, the problem is your internet, not IPTV.
- If one channel fails and the rest play, that channel’s stream is down. Try another version of it.
- “Expired”, “STB blocked” or a login that worked yesterday and fails today usually means the subscription ran out. The app can show you the expiry date.
- “Max connections reached” means another device is still streaming on your login.
Is IPTV down, or is it just me? The 60-second check
- Open another streaming app on the same TV, YouTube for example. If that fails too, your internet or Wi-Fi is down. Restart the modem and router and check your ISP’s outage page.
- Try a different channel. If some channels play and one does not, the problem is that one stream. Skip to the single-channel section below.
- Try another device, such as the IPTV app on your phone with Wi-Fi turned on. If it works there, the problem is the TV device or its app.
- Try the phone on mobile data. If IPTV fails on your home Wi-Fi but works on mobile data, something between your home network and the server is in the way. That can be your router, your DNS settings or your ISP.
If it fails everywhere, on every device and on mobile data, while other apps work fine, it is on the provider’s side. Check our status page and send us a message, and include what you see on the screen.
Outage trackers like Downdetector count reports from users and flag a problem when more people than usual report one. Small IPTV services may not be tracked there at all, so your own four checks are more reliable.
IPTV not working: fixes by what you see on the screen
| What you see | Usual cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| “Login failed”, “invalid credentials” or “authorization” error | A typo in the username, password or server address, or an expired account | Re-enter all three by hand. Watch for a space at the end if you pasted them |
| “Account expired”, or a login that worked yesterday now fails | The subscription reached its expiry date | Check the expiry date in the app’s account info, then renew |
| “Your STB is blocked” on a MAG box | Subscription expired, or the MAC is not activated | See our MAG and portal guide |
| “Max connections reached” or it plays for a minute then stops | Another device is streaming on the same login | Close the app on the other device, or move to a plan with more screens |
| Channel list loads, one channel shows a black screen | That stream is down or moved | Try another version of the channel (FHD, HD, 4K) |
| Sound but no picture | The device cannot decode that stream’s video format | Switch the player’s decoder, or try the channel in another app |
| Picture but no sound | An audio format the device or app does not support | Change the audio track in the player, or try another app |
| Channels empty, “no playlist” or nothing loads | The server address is wrong, or the server is unreachable | Check the address and port, then do the 60-second check |
| App crashes or closes on its own | App or device problem | Clear the app cache, update it, restart the device, reinstall |
| Everything works except during big live games | Heavy load on the busiest channels | Report the channel and time to your provider |
Why did my IPTV stop working at midnight? Expiry and connection limits
Most IPTV apps sign in using what is called the Xtream Codes API. When you log in, the server answers with a small account record, and three fields in it explain most “it just stopped” cases. The field status reads Active, Expired, Disabled or Banned. The field exp_date holds the exact moment the subscription ends. And max_connections sets how many streams can run at once, with active_cons showing how many are running now.
So a service that dies on the dot at midnight, or at the same time of day you first subscribed, has almost certainly reached exp_date. Most apps show the expiry date in the account or settings screen, so check there before anything else.
A stream that plays for a minute and then stops, or refuses to start while another TV in the house is on, is the connection limit. Our plans allow one to four screens, depending on which one you bought. A phone left playing in someone’s pocket counts as a screen until the app is closed.
One channel not working while the rest play
If the list loads and most channels play, your setup is fine. A single dead channel is a problem with that stream at the source, and it is ours to fix. Big channels usually appear more than once in the list, in FHD, HD and sometimes 4K versions, so switch to another version while you wait. Then tell support the channel name and the time it failed.
If a channel has a picture and a blank guide, that is a different problem with a different fix, covered in our EPG guide.
Sound but no picture, or a black screen on some channels
Android-based players, which covers Fire TV and Android TV, hand video decoding to the device’s own hardware. Google’s developer documentation for the Android media player says the formats it can play depend on the device, and so does HDR support. Certain surround-sound formats also need extra decoder support that not every app includes. The practical result is that one channel can play perfectly on a new box and show a black screen with sound on an older stick.
Three things to try, in order. Switch the decoder in the app’s player settings from hardware to software, or the reverse. Try the HD version of the channel instead of 4K. Then try the same channel in a second app, such as TiviMate if you use IPTV Smarters, or the other way round.
IPTV works on mobile data but not on home Wi-Fi
That points to something between your home and the server. Restart the router first. If you recently changed routers, check that any parental controls or security filters on the new one are not blocking the app.
DNS is another common culprit. DNS is the service that turns a server name into an address, and your ISP normally provides it. In one Samsung community case, IPTV apps suddenly showed a black screen on a TV while other apps worked, and setting the TV’s DNS to a public resolver fixed it. On most TVs and boxes you can change DNS in the network settings, under a manual or advanced option.
Separately, some live-sports servers are blocked by Federal Court order in Canada. We explain those orders in the buffering guide and do not advise on getting around them.
What do IPTV error codes like 401, 403 and 503 mean?
Some apps show the raw HTTP code from the server. The standard meanings come from MDN’s web reference. The IPTV column is what these codes usually mean in practice, and providers do not all use them the same way.
| Code | Standard meaning | Usually means for IPTV |
|---|---|---|
| 401 | Authentication required | Wrong username or password |
| 403 | Access refused | Account expired or disabled, or the connection limit is reached |
| 404 | Not found | That channel or film has been removed or moved |
| 429 | Too many requests | The app is retrying too fast. Wait a minute |
| 500 | Server error | A fault on the provider’s side |
| 502, 504 | Bad gateway, gateway timeout | A server in the chain is not answering. Wait, then retry |
| 503 | Service unavailable | Maintenance or overload on the provider’s side |
Frequently asked questions
Is IPTV down right now?
Open another streaming app, try another channel, then try the IPTV app on your phone on mobile data. If it fails everywhere while other apps work, it is on the provider’s side. Our status page shows known issues.
Why did my IPTV stop working at midnight?
Almost always the subscription reached its expiry date. The login response includes an exact expiry time, and most apps show it in the playlist or account info screen.
Why do I get “login failed” with the right details?
Check for a trailing space after pasting, a missing http:// or port in the server address, and letter O typed instead of zero. If all three are right, the account may have expired.
Why does IPTV work for a minute and then stop?
Usually the connection limit: another device is streaming on the same login. Close the app there, or choose a plan with more screens.
I see the channels but they show a black screen. What is wrong?
If it is every channel, check the server address and your connection. If it is some channels, switch the player’s decoder or try the HD version. If there is sound, it is a video format the device cannot decode.
IPTV stopped after I changed my router. Why?
The new router may have security filters or different DNS settings. Restart everything, then check the router’s parental controls and try a public DNS on the TV device.
Should I reinstall the app?
Only after clearing the cache and restarting the device. Reinstalling fixes a crashing app, but it does not fix an expired login or a down server.
Disclosure: we run BuyIPTV.ca, an IPTV service for Canadian households. Account fields are from published Xtream-compatible API documentation, MAG messages from Infomir’s FAQ, HTTP meanings from MDN, and decoder behaviour from Google’s Android developer documentation, checked September 29, 2026.