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Apple Removes iTunes Movies and TV Shows Apps in tvOS 26.4

Farquar said:
Have you not seen how people complain when Apple removes things, no matter how irrelevant they are? They have to wait until things are long past dead.
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Removes what? Wishlists are going away I guess, but the tv app replaces the iTunes apps completely bar buying music for some reason.
 
turbineseaplane said:
Why are people cheering for things to be removed and taken away?
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Because irrelevant, redundant, confusing things SHOULD be taken away. Not everyone using these products is an Apple genius. If anyone had asked me for help with buying a movie from Apple in the last 5+ years and said they were in that app, I would have told them they were in the wrong place. The wrong place shouldn't exist.
 
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Farquar said:
Have you not seen how people complain when Apple removes things, no matter how irrelevant they are? They have to wait until things are long past dead.
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Yeah, it’s weird.

I haven’t bought iTunes content for 15 years now.

I think my guess is as to why they still keep purchases of music and videos around is because it will cost them so little now to provide and even if that line of revenue drops every year, I bet the profits are still too good to miss out on.
 
MacRumors said:


With tvOS 26.4, Apple has removed the dedicated iTunes Movies and iTunes TV Shows apps that listed content available for purchase. Buying movies and TV shows can be done through the Apple TV app instead.

apple-tv-itunes-tv-shows-movies.jpg

Apple started phasing out the iTunes Movies and iTunes TV Shows apps back in 2023, redirecting users to the Apple TV app for purchases. The apps remained available until now to provide customers with instructions on where to find their content, and to provide access to the iTunes Wish List.

Apple removed the TV Shows and Movies section in the iPhone and iPad TV app with the launch of iOS 17.2 and iPadOS 17.2, and eliminated iTunes wishlists in those updates. tvOS 17.2 also got rid of wish lists. After customer complaints, wishlist options were returned, but Apple again started warning about the end of wishlists last week.

Customers that still have an iTunes Wish List with movies and TV shows have received emails letting them know the feature is being removed. The emails include links to migrate those lists to the Apple TV watchlist feature as an alternative.

apple-itunes-wishlist-removed.jpg


Apple has been working to consolidate all movie and TV show viewing and buying to the TV app, so it's all in one place. There is no longer any iTunes-related app on the Apple TV, but the iPhone still has an iTunes Store option for purchasing music.

Apple has also updated the Apple TV Audio Format settings in tvOS 26.4. Dolby Atmos immersive audio has been replaced with Spatial Audio, and there is an option to convert to Dolby Digital 5.1, select Stereo Only, or turn on Auto mode. There's also a Continuous Audio Connection option for HDMI output.

tvOS 26.4 is available to developers and public beta testers at the current time, with a release planned for spring.


Article Link: Apple Removes iTunes Movies and TV Shows Apps in tvOS 26.4
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It's very stupid having to look for a tab in the tv app i don't exactly want to use.
 
turbineseaplane said:
Why are people cheering for things to be removed and taken away?
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Well, in this particular case it’s just things being moved into one more convenient app so there’s no reason to have multiple variations of it on the home screen of your Apple TV.

It’s very different to the Microsoft approach which in the Windows 11 offers you literally three different settings apps.
 
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anyone mind sharing… what is the default order of the stock apps now that these are gone?
(in other words, if tvOS had a reset Home Screen, what would the result be)
 
bluecoast said:
I wonder when the itms itself will go?

I guess people are still using it - even if its ancient design is a clear hint from Apple that they would really rather you not.
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Indeed it's ancient. I try to purchase tracks on Bandcamp now, which includes the option for ALAC downloads. For everything else, there's YouTube Music.
 
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Big fan since we were never allowed to delete these useless apps before. If they had provided the simple option to delete/hide these dumb icons years ago, we wouldn't much care now.
 
tennisproha said:
The iTunes apps are being removed while their feature still aren't available in the Apple TV app. You still can't see which version of movie or tv show you own in the TV app, it shows 4K even if you only own the HD version.
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Yeah, that’s my issue with the Apple TV app on the Apple TV, and iPhone/iPad as well. At least the Apple TV app on the Mac shows you the version own. I wish they would take the same approach that Fandango At Home(formerly Vudu) and shows you which version you own and also gives you the option to purchase the upgrade.
 
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ThatGuyInLa said:
WAIT.... WAAAAAIT.

This audio stuff. Does this mean, at least for Apple stuff, they could send you full fat Atmos and DTSHD (okay probably not DTS but one can dream) lossless? No longer trapped with Atmos wrapped up in DD5.1 constraints???? Full audio quality???? [Dolby Atmos TrueHD] THIS IS HUGE if so. It's one of the many reasons physical media still kicks streamings ass. For those that have the sound systems that can use it. The Atmos audio from a stream is low bite rate junk. It's an absurdly low bit rate for all the channel data it's tying to push. However due to maintaining compatibility with, "all the things," DD5.1 for streaming has been a MUST for all. Also, the internet pipe needed for full HQ is rather heavy but not so rare nowadays. To just have the option to finally get that level of audio streamed out for movies and TV.... YESSSSSsss.
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The article only says that they renamed the "Dolby Atmos" option in the audio settings for "Spatial Audio". Nothing more. I highly doubt they will start streaming TrueHD audio. It doesn't make much economical sense. Most people don't have audio setups good enough to hear the difference.
 
tennisproha said:
The iTunes apps are being removed while their feature still aren't available in the Apple TV app. You still can't see which version of movie or tv show you own in the TV app, it shows 4K even if you only own the HD version.
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If it says 4K, it’s available to watch in 4K. That was something Apple did when 4K first came out on Apple TV. It’s a free upgrade. However, if you downloads purchased movies on your laptop/desktop, it won’t be 4K, just HD. If you’ve been with Apple long enough, there’s some movies that aren’t in HD, and you have to pay to upgrade them. No idea how to do that though
 
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wilderkun said:
If it says 4K, it’s available to watch in 4K. That was something Apple did when 4K first came out on Apple TV. It’s a free upgrade. However, if you downloads purchased movies on your laptop/desktop, it won’t be 4K, just HD. If you’ve been with Apple long enough, there’s some movies that aren’t in HD, and you have to pay to upgrade them. No idea how to do that though
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I really hope this audio name change doesn’t mess with my currently working 5.2.2 Dolby Atmos setup, if so I may need to dump Apple for another streaming device.
 
this is another of those, oh apple decides to "_______" times. they left Movies and TV Shows link on the main screen. After leaving them dead for a very long time.

In typical tech world lunacy, they want people to navigate via their TV App. they ought to just give us shortcuts to our library and the store together. similar on tv shows. the TV app is "ok" but lots more navigating around to get what you want.

Apple.... make it simple please
 
Baseiseough said:
The article only says that they renamed the "Dolby Atmos" option in the audio settings for "Spatial Audio". Nothing more. I highly doubt they will start streaming TrueHD audio. It doesn't make much economical sense. Most people don't have audio setups good enough to hear the difference.
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That auto audio setting sure sounds like audio passthrough to me? I guess we’ll see in time
 
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