Sky+ app has launched a new update that allows Apple users to turn their iPhone and iPod Touch into a remote control.

The Sky+ app, which has been available the iPhone since 2009, has been updated to allow people subscribed to Sky+ network to change channels as they watch TV.

Users of the app will be able to pause, play and rewind TV with a swipe or tap of the finger, and they will also be able to access the planner and browse the recordings on their set-top box, Sky News reports.

According to the report, in order to use the app, Sky customers would have to connect their Sky+HD box to the same WiFi network as their phone.

Launched in 2009, the free Sky+ app has been downloaded more than five million times and attracts an average of more than 1.2 million users a month, according to its makers, the report said.