Behind-the-scenes update allows for Apple TV app installs from iOS or iTunes

Apple on Wednesday announced changes to the way it handles tvOS apps, most notably allowing one to be automatically downloaded to an Apple TV if a person picks up its iOS counterpart.

For the feature to work, automatic downloads must be turned on for a user's iTunes account. Previously, people would have to manually find and download tvOS apps even if iOS versions were available.

Developers can now also offer direct links, by way of iTunes Link Maker, to tvOS apps in the iOS and iTunes versions of the App Store. A universal URL incorporates screenshots and details for all compatible devices, including iPhones, iPads, iPods, the Apple TV, and/or the Apple Watch.

While Apple skipped updating the Apple TV hardware this year with features like 4K support, it has been tackling the software side, for instance introducing tvOS 10 and promising additions like single sign-on support, a dedicated "TV" app, and the ability to jump straight into live streams using Siri.

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7 Comments

rfrmac

said about 7 years ago

But still can't get to all of your movies in your own iTunes directory using Siri. Why doesn't Apple move "Computer" into the app? If you want to be a hub, be a hub.

rick chapman

said about 7 years ago

In thought, this seems like a very great idea, but I don't want every app I have on my iPhone on my iPad or on my MacBook. Again, I am pretty sure that I don't want every app have on any of my devices on all of them. Don't get me wrong, some of the apps I have downloaded are actually on all of my devices, but it is because I put them on each device separately. It is nice that Apple makes it easier to have an app, purchased for one device, available and suggested for download on others, and even nicer that they would allow it to downloaded for free on the other devices as well. I still would rather be the final say in which apps go on which devices, since some experiences aren't so useful.

cpsro

said about 7 years ago

rick chapman said:

In thought, this seems like a very great idea, but I don't want every app I have on my iPhone on my iPad or on my MacBook.

Agreed, but it's a great option to have, so you don't have to remember every app you wanted on your Apple TV, and then have to go track them down. The next time you visit your Apple TV, every app you wanted will already be there. And for apps you don't want, it's far easier to delete them when you come across them (and the bandwidth required to download doesn't eat into cellular data with an Apple TV either). The newly installed apps will all be at the bottom of the display, too, which is out of the way and makes them easy to ignore until you're ready to decide what to do with them.