SharePlay comes to Mac in latest macOS Monterey beta

Apple is continuing work to bring SharePlay capabilities to Mac, with the first beta version of macOS Monterey 12.1 incorporating the screen sharing feature that debuted on the company's other major platforms this week.

Issued to developers on Thursday, the first macOS Monterey 12.1 beta release includes support for SharePlay, Apple said in a post to its developer website.

SharePlay enables Apple device users to stream movies, TV, music, their screens and other media during a FaceTime video call. Users can also view shared content on Apple TV while chatting on an iPhone or iPad.

The feature was initially slated for launch with iOS 15, but Apple pushed back release. After multiple beta rounds, SharePlay debuted this week with iOS 15.1, iPadOS 15.1 and tvOS 15.1.

A number of Apple apps support the feature, including Apple Music, Apple TV+ and Apple Fitness+, and Apple is allowing developers to integrate SharePlay experiences into their iOS and Mac apps.

In its announcement today, Apple says developers can build SharePlay experiences across its platforms without relying on the SharePlay Development Profile by using the GroupActivities entitlement. More information can be found on the SharePlay for Developers webpage.

12 Comments

Japhey 1772 comments · 6 Years

About 3 years ago

I know all the bloggers are feigning outrage that this feature is arriving late, but be honest my AI peeps…how many of you are seriously missing this in your life? How many of you will actually use SharePlay more than one time?

I know, I know, I can already hear the Georges out there saying “just because you don’t like something, blah blah blah”. But I have many people in my circle of all different ages, backgrounds, and whatnot, and not a single one of them has ever expressed an interest in this feature or dismay at having to wait for it.

So, I’m seriously wondering…who is actually excited for SharePlay?

22july2013 3725 comments · 11 Years

About 3 years ago

Japhey said:

So, I’m seriously wondering…who is actually excited for SharePlay?

The article says "SharePlay enables Apple device users to ...[share]... their screens".

I will be using that feature every week to help my friends and family every week, remotely.

Japhey 1772 comments · 6 Years

About 3 years ago

22july2013 said:

Japhey said:

So, I’m seriously wondering…who is actually excited for SharePlay?

The article says "SharePlay enables Apple device users to ...[share]... their screens".

I will be using that feature every week to help my friends and family every week, remotely.

Ok, that I can definitely understand, and I can’t believe I forgot about using SharePlay for that. I guess I meant for the media sharing over FaceTime that they’ve been touting for 5 months. I just don’t know of anybody who’s even remotely interested in doing that, and I wanted to take the pulse of the AI readers.
Thank you for the response.

22july2013 3725 comments · 11 Years

About 3 years ago

Japhey said:

22july2013 said:

Japhey said:

So, I’m seriously wondering…who is actually excited for SharePlay?

The article says "SharePlay enables Apple device users to ...[share]... their screens".

I will be using that feature every week to help my friends and family every week, remotely.

Ok, that I can definitely understand, and I can’t believe I forgot about using SharePlay for that. I guess I meant for the media sharing over FaceTime that they’ve been touting for 5 months. I just don’t know of anybody who’s even remotely interested in doing that, and I wanted to take the pulse of the AI readers.
Thank you for the response.

Your response with both kind and humble, which is appreciated. You are probably a likeable person in real life.

crowley 10431 comments · 15 Years

About 3 years ago

Japhey said:

22july2013 said:

Japhey said:

So, I’m seriously wondering…who is actually excited for SharePlay?

The article says "SharePlay enables Apple device users to ...[share]... their screens".

I will be using that feature every week to help my friends and family every week, remotely.

Ok, that I can definitely understand, and I can’t believe I forgot about using SharePlay for that. I guess I meant for the media sharing over FaceTime that they’ve been touting for 5 months. I just don’t know of anybody who’s even remotely interested in doing that, and I wanted to take the pulse of the AI readers.
Thank you for the response.

Even that is hardly worth get excited for, other apps have had this functionality for years. I'm sure Apple will deliver a nice implementation, but meh, it's old hat.