Technology

Google Removing Its Play Movies and TV App From All Roku & Most Smart TVs

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The Google Play Movies and television app will not be available on any Roku set-top box or any Samsung, LG, Vizio or Roku smart TV starting July 15th, Google has announced (via 9to5Google). If you’ve got movies or TV shows purchased or rented through the service, you’ll still be ready to access them through the “Your movies and shows” section of the YouTube app on those devices.

This change also will affect you if if you used the films and television app to access Movies Anywhere, the service that permits you to redeem codes from DVDs and Blu-rays so you’ll access your media digitally. Google has confirmed to The Verge that users who relied on Play Movies and television to access that content are going to be ready to do so through YouTube.

There are a couple of other caveats to notice within the transition to YouTube. Your Watchlist will not be viewable within the app (though it can still be seen on the online by Googling “my watchlist”), and while your family can still share the content you purchased from the Movie and television store, any purchases made within the YouTube app won’t be shared together with your family.

If you’ve got movies or TV content purchased through the Play Store, here’s how you’ll be ready to access them after July 15th:

On Android phones/tablets: using the Google TV app or the YouTube app
On iPhones/iPads: using the Google Play Movies and television app, or the YouTube App
On Roku devices: using the YouTube app
On Samsung, LG, Vizio, and Roku smart TVs: using the YouTube app
On Chromecast: using the Google TV app
On the web: using the Google Play Movies and television website or YouTube website
On Android TV: using the Google Play Movies and television app (according to Google’s documentation)
To view your content on YouTube, log in, attend Library, then tap “Your movies and shows.” There, you’ll see your Google Play Store movie and television purchases, your Movies Anywhere content, and any content purchased from within the YouTube app itself (with the family sharing caveat noted above).

Transitioning from one app to a different are often tough, but Google is hoping to require a number of the sting away for users by offering them a present code which will be applied to their next movie or TV purchase — though you’ll need to redeem it on YouTube