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Watch Google Play Movies and TV Shows on Apple TV

Watch Google Play Movies and TV Shows on Apple TV

published by Chand Bellur
December 24, 2016 at 1:29 p.m. PST

Google Play offers movies and TV shows, often at a better price than iTunes. This article explores how to watch Google Play movies and TV shows natively on Apple TV, without using AirPlay.

Browsing the web, I often see users pining for Google Play and Amazon Prime apps for Apple TV. Apple doesn’t actively prevent third parties from selling content on Apple TV. The problem is that Apple expects a 30% cut of all in-app purchases. This isn’t unique to the Apple ecosystem. Google and Amazon also take about a third of revenues from in-app purchases. Given the costs involved with a tvOS app, many content providers have decided to skip the platform.

Fan boys may get excited about their platform of choice, but they’re all so similar. When it comes down to it, hardware and operating systems are the main differences, and I prefer Apple’s offerings. This doesn’t mean that I have to buy into the Apple ecosystem entirely. In fact, I am intentionally avoiding being locked in to Apple’s ecosystem.

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Just because you own an Apple device, doesn’t mean you have to use iTunes, Apple Music or any other Apple app or service. In fact, you get to use iTunes, which users of other devices don’t. Apple critics often complain that Apple doesn’t offer users choices. Well, I can rent or buy content from iTunes, and others can’t. I can also rent or buy content from Google Play and Amazon. Thanks to a small loophole, I can watch Google Play purchases and rentals directly on Apple TV, without using AirPlay.

No matter how Apple approaches this, they will be criticized. If they offer iTunes on every platform, they would be called out as monopolistic. When they don’t do this, critics complain that they are too closed. As the owner of Apple devices, I have a more choices when it comes to content purchases. iTunes also has some great deals, especially the 99 cent movie of the week. Each content platform has different prices on certain items. It’s always best to shop around.

Why Purchase Movies and TV Shows from Google Play?

Given that iTunes is so easy to use and integrated into Apple TV, why would Apple device owners buy anything from the Google Play store? The answer is simple. Google Play often has better prices on content. For example, if you want to buy season 7 of The Walking Dead on iTunes (SD quality), it costs $30.99. It’s only $26.99 on Google Play. There are other great deals. For the most part, both services have identical pricing on many items. The HD version of The Walking Dead is the same price in both stores. But if you take a little time to shop around, you can save a few bucks here and there, and it all adds up.

Google Play also offers better reliability and usability. Let’s face it, sometimes Apple has problems with data center operations. The iTunes Store and other services are often very slow. Maybe they are the victim of their own success, but data center operations are not Apple’s forte. They have more outages and slow-downs than their competitors. When I’m in the mood to watch a movie, it should just work.

I also find iTunes TV shows offers poor usability. Episodes and extras are all jumbled into one list. I noticed that automatically recommending the next episode to watch doesn’t always work right. I always find binge watching iTunes TV shows on Apple TV to be a frustrating experience. Google Play offers slightly better usability, but both could learn a lesson from Netflix.

When you rent a movie on Google Play, you have 48 hours to finish watching it after it has started. iTunes forces you to watch the movie in 24 hours. The iTunes rental deadline has proven problematic on occasion. An extra day is much more generous.

iTunes also has some strange rules when it comes to movie rentals. If you rent a movie on your Apple TV, you can only watch it on that device. You can’t watch in on your iPhone, iPad or Mac. This only applies to rentals, not purchases. When I rent a movie on Google Play, I can play it on any device.

Both Google Play and iTunes offer family sharing plans, enabling family members to share content. In fact, apart from different prices on some items and rental expiration, the services are remarkably similar. Fan boys may go ballistic about which one is better, but that’s more of a reflection of our consumer-oriented society.

I have to admit, Google’s prices are better overall, with a lot of $3.99 and $4.99 movie rentals. It seems that almost all new releases on iTunes are $5.99 to rent, but I almost always go for their 99 cent movie of the week. My advice — use both! Don’t get hung up on brand loyalty or dwell in either fan boy camp. If you’re rational, you’ll come out ahead.

Create a Google Account

A Google account is central to buying content from Google Play. If you don’t already have a Google account, you must first create one. Using a browser on your computer, tablet or smartphone, go to www.google.com and tap on “Sign in” on the top right corner. A page prompting you to sign in to Google appears. Click on the “Create account” link directly below the log in panel. Follow the instructions to create a Google account. For now, your credit card is not required. You’ll only need it when you purchase content from the Google Play store.

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Purchase a Video on Google Play

You can’t buy videos from the Google Play store directly on Apple TV. Apple takes a 30% cut from in-app purchases. Like most content providers, Google bypasses in-app purchasing. This makes it slightly less convenient than iTunes, however it is by no means a burden. After all, if you can save a few dollars on TV shows and movies, it’s worth the additional effort.

If you are using a device with lower resolution, such as an iPad 2, you can’t buy HD content on Google Play. If that’s the case, use a newer device or computer, unless you prefer SD (which is less expensive). You’ll know the video is in SD if there are no options for either format after you click the Rent button. Also, if Google Play recognizes your device as HD compatible, the Buy button will usually indicate that the video is in HD format.

This assumption is slightly annoying. I can’t use my iPad 2 to buy or rent movies on Google Play, because it defaults to SD quality and there is no way to change this. I just use my iPhone 6 or Mac. iTunes allows users to select video quality, regardless of device.

Purchasing content from Google Play is easy. First, open play.google.com in a web browser. You can use a computer, tablet or smartphone. Tap on the Movies and TV tab on the left. Next, search for a movie or TV show. You can also just browse the Google Play store. You’re likely to find some great deals. When you find a video to purchase, click on the Rent or Buy button. Follow the on-screen instructions. You may be prompted to login to your Google account. If this is your first purchase, you must enter payment information.

Watch Your Google Play Movie or TV Shows on Apple TV Without AirPlay

Now that you have made your purchase, it’s time to watch it on Apple TV. First, you’ll need to install the YouTube app. Hold down the Siri button and say “find app YouTube”. This should bring up the YouTube app installation screen. If not, open the App Store and search for YouTube. Next, click on the Install button. Once the app is installed, click on Open or hold down the Siri button and say “YouTube”.

With the YouTube app open, navigate to the Settings screen using the top menu bar. Sign in using the Google account you used to make the purchase. Once you have signed in, go to the My YouTube screen using the top menu bar. Scroll down to Purchases and your rented or purchased video is displayed. Simply click on the video to commence playback and enjoy!

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