You can no longer purchase movies and shows from Google TV

Summary

• Google TV, Android TV and the Google TV mobile app are undergoing a change that streamline purcahses.
• Moving forward, users will only be able to purchase movies and TV shows on YouTube, and not directly on Google TV.
• Past purchases will still be accessible on all platforms, including Google TV, Android TV, the Google TV app, and YouTube.

Google is constantly adding new features to its wide range of services, and it’s hardly ever that it rolls back functionality.

The tech giant’s Google TV, which, in all aspects, is a better and more up-to-date version of Android TV, receives new free streaming channels every now and then, with advanced features like AI-based recommendations, and optimization features that reduce memory usage and make apps load up faster.

The platform recently unveiled a redesigned home screen UI and it even gained a stable volume feature that was previously limited to YouTube.

The platform, alongside Android TV, is now undergoing a change, which might be considered a step forward because it somewhat streamlines things, but also a step back in the platform’s overall functionality.

In a bid to simplify how users purchase movies and TV shows on Google TV, the platform will no longer let users make purchases directly within the platform. This would make YouTube the sole purchase platform going forward. In addition to Google TV and Android TV, this change also applies to the Google TV mobile app.

“With these changes, you will no longer be able to purchase TV episodes and seasons from Google TV on Google TV devices, Android TV devices, and the Google TV Mobile app. You can continue to purchase TV shows from YouTube depending on country availability,” wrote Google on a Google TV support page.

It’s worth noting that the functionality isn’t new to YouTube. Users could already make purchases on the video streaming platform, and see previous purchases made on Google TV too.

Your purchased library isn’t going anywhere

Google made it clear in its support post that all previously purchased movies and TV shows will remain available to you across platforms, regardless of where the purchase was made. “You’ll still be able to access all of your previously purchased movies and TV shows on Google TV devices, Android TV devices, the Google TV mobile app for Android and the iOS app, and YouTube,” wrote Google.

The change is rolling out now, and Google says it will continue to roll out over the “next few weeks.” Going forward, users will only be able to purchase movies and shows within the YouTube app on their TV, and that media will also only be accessible from within the YouTube app.

As of right now, I am still able to make purchases on my Google TV and via the Google TV app. The latter, however, will soon lose its core purchase functionality, and be relegated to only managing past purchases. Only time will tell if Google kills off the mobile app entirely, or if it gives its new features to justify its existence.