Say goodbye to Google Play TV and Movies on Android TV devices, with the app poised to be replaced by a new tab in the main Android TV interface.
Google is positioning the new Shop tab for Android TV as a way for users to “easily discover and purchase new and popular movies.” But this new tab’s arrival essentially marks the end of Google Play TV and Movies, which has existed only on Android TV devices for the last couple of years.
Android TV users expecting to find Google Play Movies and TV may see a message noting that the app is “becoming Shop,” 9to5Google reports.
Slated to roll out within the next several weeks, the Shop tab sits between the Home and Discover tabs; clicking it reveals a grid of movies that are available for rent or purchase directly over the Android TV interface.
Besides movie purchases and TV rentals, the Shop tab will also serve as a home for your previously purchased movies, including titles bought through YouTube, the Google TV mobile app, other Google TV and Android TV devices, or the (now legacy) Google Play TV and Movies app.
It’s worth noting that Google’s Shop tab announcement applies only to Android TV devices, not the newer Google TV platform.
Google says the Shop tab for Android TV will be available in 24 countries and will roll out over the “next few weeks.”
Once the home of movie and TV purchases through Google, the Google Play TV and Movies app has been on the way out since 2020.
Google yanked the Play app from smart TV platforms in 2021, and the app stopped offering movie and TV purchases last year before ultimately being replaced on Android and iOS devices by the Google TV app.
Author: Ben Patterson, Senior Writer
Ben has been writing about technology and consumer electronics for more than 20 years. A PCWorld contributor since 2014, Ben joined TechHive in 2019, where he covers smart speakers, soundbars, and other smart and home-theater devices. You can follow Ben on Twitter.