On Android TV devices, Apple has removed the opportunity to rent or buy movies from its Apple TV app. This also affects Google TV-enabled devices, such as the 2020 Chromecast and recent Sony, TCL, and other TVs. The ability to directly rent or buy content has been deleted, according to FlatPanelsHD aoknd 9to5Mac. Apple TV Plus memberships purchased on-device are also no longer allowed, according to The Verge.
Instead, there’s now a “how to watch” option that takes users to Apple goods “or other streaming devices” to rent, buy, or subscribe to Apple TV Plus. These updates have yet to appear on Apple’s Android TV support page, which still displays direct transactions as supported. The lack of rentals and purchases was initially noticed by Nvidia Shield owners a few days ago.
The app’s top navigation panel has removed the previous “Movies” and “TV Shows” sections (or “Store” in some cases), leaving only Watch Now, Apple TV Plus, and Library. All of the same movie and TV show listings are still present and searchable. But on any title you pull up, the only choices are now the “how to watch” button and “add to Up Next.”
The Apple TV app first began making its way to select Android TV devices in late 2020 and became widely available on the platform last June. Less than a year later, Apple is now pulling back direct rentals, purchases, and subscriptions — leaving the app to serve as a portal for the content you’ve paid for elsewhere. “Not all devices support on-device transactions, so you may not be able to buy, rent, or subscribe to shows or channels directly,” Apple says on its website.
With the Android TV app, you can still access your existing library and any movies and shows purchased / rented on another device. And that’s a good thing since Apple often delivers higher-bitrate streams than some competing entertainment services.
Apple and Google have been reached for comment on the situation by The Verge. This is thought to be a scenario where Apple no longer wants to pay Google a cut of individual in-app purchases. Platform fees are a thorny issue that Apple is all too familiar with. For similar reasons, the Apple TV app for Amazon’s Fire TV platform has never permitted movie rentals or purchases. What irritates people about this situation is that Apple used to provide all of this functionality but now appears to have changed its mind.
You may still rent or buy content through the Apple TV app on Roku devices, Samsung and LG smart TVs, Xbox and PlayStation gaming consoles, and, of course, Apple’s own products after this change.
