Apple has updated iTunes to version 12.6, quietly adding the ability for users to rent a movie on an Apple device and then watch it on their other Apple devices. The update is reported to be rolling out to users right now, so if you don’t see it now, wait awhile.
Introduced as part of iTunes 12.6, which is rolling out to users as of this writing, the “rent once, watch anywhere” feature lets customers watch content rentals on any iPhone or iPad running iOS 10.3 or Apple TVs running tvOS 10.2. Those operating system versions have yet to move out of beta, suggesting a launch in the next few days.
Previously, movie rentals were restricted to the device they were purchased on. If you rented a film on your iPad, you couldn’t watch it on your Apple TV, for example. There were ways around it, but they carried a “gotcha!”
Apple previously allowed movies rented via iTunes on Mac or PC to be transferred to a portable device by syncing over USB, but that content would disappear from a computer’s iTunes library. Alternatively, users were able to stream downloaded rentals from iOS to Apple TV using Apple’s AirPlay feature.
The change in policy will surely be a welcome one among Apple’s customers.
iTunes 12.6 is rolling out to users, and can be downloaded from the Mac App Store “Updates” tab, or by clicking the “Check for Updates” option in the iTunes menu.
