That’s why imported data from TV Time looks different in other apps
A lot of people wonder why their data changes after importing it from TV Time into apps like Sofa Time, Serializd, and others.
The main reason is that these apps don't use the same metadata source.
- TV Time uses TheTVDB as its primary database.
- Most other tracking apps use The Movie Database (TMDb).
Because these databases are maintained independently, they often have different:
- Show and episode artwork
- Episode titles
- Season ordering (especially for specials)
Release dates
- TV show or movie IDs
This is why, after importing your data, you might notice:
- Different posters or backdrops
- Different episode names
- Missing TV shows, movies, or specials
- Episodes matched incorrectly or not matched at all
The import itself usually isn't the problem. The issue is that the app has to match your watch history from one database (TheTVDB) to another (TMDb), and those databases don't always have identical information.
Unfortunately, there's no perfect solution unless both apps use the same metadata source or provide manual matching for unmatched entries.