Google is Killing Play Movies and TV, Will Only Have Three Video Stores Left

Google is killing off the last vestiges of Google Play Movies & TV, a service that sold premium Hollywood films and TV shows as part of Google's once-cohesive string of Google Play content stores. From a report: The company emailed users of Android TV to say that the "Google Play Movies & TV app will no longer be available on your Android TV device from 05 October 2023. You can continue to buy or rent movies directly through the Shop tab on your Android TV." Play Movies has been going through a slow death as Google shuffles around its media content. The smartphone Play Movies app became "Google TV" in 2022, and that same year, the Play Store app was stripped of movie and TV sales.

On third-party smart TVs (this is a different category than today's Android TV announcement) the app was killed in 2021. On Android TV, the new "Shop" tab seems to just be an OS-integrated Google TV content store. If you think this sounds confusing, you're not alone. Google's support page reflects the ridiculous state of Google's video apps, instructing users that "in Your Library, you can find content that you bought from: Google Play Movies & TV, YouTube, Android TV, Google TV." How any normal person is supposed to understand that pile of Google media brands, and how it works across phones, the web, and various smart TV OSes, is beyond me.

+1

[VonNaturAustreVe]

More one service dead by Google.

Re:

[SirSpanksALot]

not really... they're just consolidating all the content in one place - IMO that's a better move than have 4 different places. You still have all your stuff, you can still buy new stuff, it's just all consolidated in one place, and still owned by google.

"Move fast and kill products"

[Tablizer]

Howz that working for ya so far, Google?

Re:

[Stoutlimb]

How is that working out?

As well as "don't be evil" has.

Could be worse

[DarkOx]

How any normal person is supposed to understand that pile of Google media brands, and how it works across phones, the web, and various smart TV OSes, is beyond me.

It could be worse, "your" stuff could just get disappeared entirely. Be glad they even still let you see it. Streaming subscriptions and rentals are one thing but I still don't understand why anyone would 'buy' something on Apple/Prime-Video/Google*/others because you are never more then renting it.

Any day they can pull the service and poof that movie you 'bought' for $14 vanishes. If you want to actually buy a movie or song or whatever you better get disk or a least a file you can play offline..

Re:

[unrtst]

I've bought a handful of titles on Prime/Google/others. Though I don't want to be an apologist to those labeling things as "buy" when there's no real thing to own, I do find value in these as a sort of long term rental. I've been burned so many times by renting something and not finishing it within 48 hours that I end up buying them about 1/3rd of the time instead. It's still cheaper than 2 theater seats around here, and I can take as long as I'd like to watch it or rewatch it nearly whenever I'd like.

While

Re:

[WCLPeter]

I still don't understand why anyone would 'buy' something on Apple/Prime-Video/Google*/others because you are never more then renting it.

Same thing for games on Steam / EA / Epic / etc... People who drop $100 plus on a digital download, why!?!? If I'm spending that much money it better come in a fancy box with a proper printed manual (remember the days when a lowly Commodore 64 game that took maybe fifteen hours to finish came with a nice printed manual?)!

Don't get it. No digital game, or movie / show, is worth full physical media price - just wait until it goes on sale and get for $10 or less.

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[posixively_true]

Most of the time, the physical PC games copies are "useless" in the sense that they only include a product key to activate on an online store or may have a disc but still requires to install a client like Steam making the box a glorified paperweight. And I'm pretty sure most of them don't have any manual inside the box. I don't know about recent console games though. It's been a long time since I've bought a PC triple-A game either.

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[pacinpm]

Use Good Old Games: gog.com - DRM free, downloadable games you buy.

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[Vancorps]

Or use a service like Playlater to download your movies from Prime and then you get to keep them even if Amazon killed Prime.

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[luis_a_espinal]

If you want to actually buy a movie or song or whatever you better get disk or a least a file you can play offline..

Or you can buy it with the understanding that you are buying a ticket for a long-term, if not near-eternal, rental.

I own physical and digital media, and I've only seen a purchase rescinded or going poof (an audiobook.)

The risk of losing the long-term rental is real, but in my experience, incredibly unlikely to happen.

not news

[Jrabbit05]

I wonder who might want alternative coverage of the litigants in US v. Google..... hmmm makes you think.

No problem

[PPH]

I'll just wait for the DVD release and rent the disc from Netflix.

Re:

[StormReaver]

You'd better hurry.

YouTube

[TwistedGreen]

You can also watch and buy movies through YouTube. It's buried in the menus somewhere, and makes things even more confusing.

Solution!

[Anonymous Coward]

Arrrrr!

3 movies stores?

[LeadGeek]

thepiratebay, mtx, and youtube/yt-dlp ;-) (at least they won't wrap you in DRM)

"Only"?

[93 Escort Wagon]

I'm not sure that's the correct word, given the context.

Sounds like a him problem

[WillyWanker]

It's not hard. On your TV it's the shop tab. On your phone or tablet it's the Google TV app. How is this difficult unless you're an idiot?