Facebook Watch is a dedicated app for watching Facebook videos and livestreams on TVs. However, Apple TV users will no longer have access to the platform as Facebook seems to have discontinued the Facebook Watch app for tvOS.
As noted by users and also confirmed by 9to5Mac, the Facebook Watch app no longer works on Apple TV. It seems that Facebook has shut down the tvOS app with its latest update, which interestingly also changed the app icon with a new logo. However, the app is still available on the App Store.
Now, when trying to access Facebook Watch on tvOS, users get a message saying that the app “is no longer available” and that the videos can be watched on Facebook’s website. Of course, since tvOS lacks a web browser, there’s no other way to watch Facebook videos on Apple TV except by using AirPlay from another device.
Facebook announced its dedicated app for watching videos on Apple TV in 2017. Users could log into their Facebook accounts to watch videos from their friends, accounts they follow, and even suggested videos and livestreams.
Here’s how the company describes the app in its website:
On Facebook Watch, you can discover videos and original shows on subjects like sports, news, beauty, food and entertainment. To watch these videos on TV, you can download the Facebook Watch TV app, or stream to a TV from the Facebook mobile app. Learn more about streaming videos from the Facebook mobile app to your TV.
Apparently, only the tvOS app has been discontinued, as Facebook Watch is still available and working on Smart TVs.
9to5Mac’s Take
Unfortunately, the end of Facebook Watch for Apple TV doesn’t exactly come as a surprise. Just like watchOS, tvOS has been losing multiple apps recently as developers don’t seem to care about the platform. After all, unlike the iPhone and iPad, Apple TV is not exactly a popular device.
At the same time, the tvOS SDK is quite limited – that’s why you also don’t see many popular games available on Apple TV despite its reasonable hardware. Even Apple doesn’t seem to care that much about Apple TV anymore, as tvOS updates get less significant every year.
Unfortunately, if Apple doesn’t rethink its strategy with Apple TV, we may lose other important tvOS apps in the future.
Will you miss the Facebook Watch app on Apple TV? Let us know in the comments below.
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H/T: Ahmad Kishani.
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