Google Play Movies & TV Gets AirPlay Streaming


Google Play, the official app store for Android devices, is home to millions of apps and other content available for consumers. There are thousands of movies and television shows available on Google Play Movies and TV, some in high definition (HD), including action, romance, drama, comedy, and animation, available for rent or for purchase. Now, Google’s iOS version of its Play Movies and TV app has been updated with the AirPlay streaming function via the Apple TV, according to Engadget. This will finally give consumers the choice of watching all of their favorite movies and TV shows in their Google Play account on their HD televisions by using Apple TV.

Before this most recent update, the app only let users stream content to their televisions with Google’s Chromecast service. With Chromecast, users select the media they wish to play by using mobile and web apps that support the Google Cast technology — a line of digital media players. But this Apple TV playback feature is only going to be available on third- and fourth-generation Apple TV devices that run Apple TV Software 7.0 or higher. In describing the update, Google writes, “Google Play Movies & TV syncs movies and TV shows from your Google Play account to your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch to watch on your device, or on any HDTV using Chromecast or Apple TV using AirPlay.”

Google Play Movies & TV Gets AirPlay Streaming
[Image via Google Play]
In addition to the AirPlay support, the Google Play Movies and TV iOS update will also allow users to stream content in HD, while also being able to stream HD content over a cellular network when a Wi-Fi connection is not available. Streaming over cellular is only going to increase the mobile data usage, so Google has also added one specific setting in Google Play Movies and TV, one that can be enabled or disabled, which will provide a warning prior to streaming over a mobile network. Plenty of other new features are on the way, like a new design for the app, recommendations based on your interests and viewing history provided by Google Play, as well as the option to search and wishlist any movie inside the Play catalog.

Google Play currently does not have a native Play Movies and TV tvOS app for Apple TV. It looks as if the company is taking its time and slowly getting more comfortable with the Apple TV, much like other rivals of Apple are doing. It’s rumored that Amazon is developing a tvOS app for Amazon Instant Video. In the future it’s possible that consumers will see Google apps beginning to pop up on the Apple TV App Store.

For music fans, Google Play Music announced a new family plan this week. Users can add five additional family members to this plan and subscribe to the Google Play Music streaming service for a monthly fee of $14.99. The same features as before will still be included, but the new family plan also gives users access to YouTube Red in the U.S., which offers ad-free music videos that can be viewed on or offline. YouTube Red will continue to run, interrupted, even with other apps being brought up or if the screen shuts off.

Google Play’s family plan is currently available in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Australia, France and Germany, with additional countries being added soon. Google Play Movies and TV is compatible with the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad running iOS 7.0 or later.

[Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images]

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