Movies Anywhere is a new service that links together iTunes, Amazon, Google Play and Vudu, but how does it all work? Don’t worry, that’s why here at Innovation Village have got you covered.
This new streaming movie service called Movies Anywhere, and it almost sounds too good to true. It doesn’t only put most of your online movies in one place, it puts them everyplace.
What if you could buy a movie on your iPad Pro and watch it on your Amazon Fire Stick? That’s what Movies Anywhere, a new app and digital download service, promises iPhone, Android and Amazon users.
So, to give just one real-life example: If you bought “The Dark Knight” — a Warner movie — on iTunes, and you’ve linked your accounts through Movies Anywhere, that same movie will then be available in the Vudu, Google Play and Amazon apps, in addition to the Movies Anywhere app itself. That means you can, for instance, get access to movies you bought on iTunes through non-Apple devices like Roku players and Android phones for the first time ever, at no additional cost.
The Movies Anywhere service lets you buy a movie just once and play it on anything that you own. It’s part app and linking service. You buy your favorite movies in your digital store of choice and – if the film’s rights are owned by one of the service’s partners – it unlocks versions in other stores. Movie studios will never agree to remove the rights management technology that keeps the movies you purchase from working on any device, but Movies Anywhere is the next best thing.
Here are 5 things you need to know about Movies Anywhere.
How Movies Anywhere Works
Movies Anywhere is a service that connects digital movies stores to one another. It’s also an app with a video player that you can download in the iTunes Store, Google Play Store and Amazon App Store.
The process is easy. You start by creating a Movies Anywhere account. Then you link your Movies Anywhere account to wherever you’ve purchased your movies. If you have an iPhone and tons of purchases in the iTunes Store, connect it to your Apple Account. Repeat the same process for any other devices and stores that you use, like Google Play, VUDU and Amazon.
The Movies Anywhere service scans your library in each store you link, then makes the movies you’ve already purchased available inside its app. It also unlocks the movie in every platform’s digital store. So, buying The Avengers: Age of Ultron in the iTunes Store unlocks a copy in the Movies Anywhere app, Google Play Movies, VUDU and Amazon Prime Video. You’re free to stream movies from your Movies Anywhere library or download them offline to watch later.
The Four Places You Can Buy for Movies Anywhere
Only movies you purchase from the iTunes Store, Amazon, Google Play and VUDU sync with Movies Anywhere. It’s really easy to tell if a film is Movies Anywhere ready in the Google Play Store. Just look for the service’s logo in the movie details area at the bottom of the page. VUDU also uses the service’s logo to let buyers know they’re purchasing a film they can watch on other devices.
The iTunes Store does not tell you that you are buying a Movies Anywhere title. iPhone and iPad owners should use the storefront at MoviesAnywhere.com to purchase new content. The online catalog links you to your favorite digital store to buy films that qualify.
You Can Unlock Movies Anywhere with A Disc
Why Movies Anywhere Can Be Frustrating
Today, Movies Anywhere has films from Disney, Warner Brothers, Universal, Sony Pictures and 20th Century Fox. As that is a pretty extensive list, chances are that most of your library will sync to the service.
On the other hand, Lionsgate and Paramount movies aren’t part of the service. So the entire Hunger Games series isn’t available. Paramount isn’t signed up yet either. Because of that, the entire Star Trek franchise is missing too.
Where You Can Watch Movies Anywhere Titles
If your smartphone, tablet or set-top box relies on the iTunes Store, Google Play Store or Prime Video, you can watch Movies Anywhere titles on it. That means iPhones, iPads, Android tablets, Android phones, Chromecast, the Fire TV and Amazon Fire tablets work with the service. Roku devices also work with the service.
Xbox One, PS4 and Windows PCs don’t have a dedicated app. Connect Movies Anywhere to VUDU and install the VUDU app if you own any of these devices.
