VUDU arrives on Apple TV. Just in time…

Sebastian Szwarc
Aug 22, 2017 · 3 min read

Right on schedule today VUDU finally arrived on Apple’s tvOS Store after year and a half of waiting, and this is huge. When Apple introduced its 4th generation model it received a lot of criticism for being “unprepared” product, released just to satisfy techbloggers. Initially lot of application were missing, and even if the situation improved in time, absence of major players in the house — Google, Amazon and VUDU was noticed. So today premiere is VERY important because this is the first time when Apple allows in its App Store application or service made by its direct competitor. There was never Google Play Movies on ATV (understandable) nor Spotify or SoundClud, with Pandora and iHeartRadio being notable exception in area of music streaming apps. So VUDU’s debut is a small punch in the nose of Amazon Prime that is probably scheduled to relase on 5 September.


What Disney has in locker ?

UltraViolet however is still a bit messy with lot of content providers. Technically, myuv.com was supposed to be you all-in-one locker but in practice this is not so simple. I can add titles I got from VUDU to see them in FandangoNow account but for now there is no way in VUDU to see my “Sharknado” from FN. To have thing worse, this whole VUDU experience on mobile devices was far from perfect, forcing people to use AirPlay and with weak connection HDX quality was far from expected.

Despite this problems, there is still noticeable trend in USA for attaching UltraViolet codes to physical copies, not the one from iTunes. And because VUDU aims to be your best friend in UV garden, lack of ATV support put Apple device in certain disadvantage to major competitors like Roku, Chromecast and FireTV, until now.

What about the app? As predicted VUDU doesn’t want to give Apple its cut, so you are only able to watch previously purchased or rented movies. With one small sort of exception — “Movies on US” section. This is selection of titles available for free to stream with ads. So technically it’s not a rent or purchase and I suppose this addition will be warmly welcomed for any cordcutter who doesn’t know what to watch friday evening. The same applies to TV Shows — maybe they are not first of the league titles but still it’s a good place to find something new.


What’s next?

You may read polish version of this article on Mój Mac

Dreamer In Black

All men are heroes…in their dreams

)
Sebastian Szwarc

Written by

Books and music lover. Sometimes developer, sometimes a critic. Talks about such things in @pear2peareu podcast. http://podcastfilmowy.pl

Dreamer In Black

All men are heroes…in their dreams

Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox. Explore
Get unlimited access to the best stories on Medium — and support writers while you’re at it. Just $5/month. Upgrade