Apple to phase out dedicated iTunes Movie Store with iOS 17.2, merging it with the TV app

With iOS 17.2 and tvOS 17.2, Apple introduced a new way to navigate within the TV app via a sidebar that lets users quickly jump between different sections, including Search, Watch Now, Channels, Store, and Library. But Apple will do more than that, as the company plans to soon phase out the dedicated iTunes Movie Store by merging it with the TV app.

Dedicated iTunes Movie Store going away

Based on code from the second beta of iOS 17.2 and tvOS 17.2, Apple will soon merge the iTunes Movie Store with the Apple TV app. Although users can already buy movies and TV shows within the TV app, Apple devices still have a dedicated iTunes Store app.

Strings seen by 9to5Mac confirm that users will soon see the following message: “iTunes Movies moved to the Apple TV app.” The TV shows section will also be merged with the Apple TV app in the regions where it is available. In beta 2, users can still access the iTunes Movie Store in its dedicated app.

Leftover comments from Apple engineers in the iOS code suggest that the change will be rolled out remotely when the update becomes available to the public. The Movies and TV Shows tabs will disappear from the iTunes Store once the new feature flags are enabled.

On Apple TV, which has separate apps for each segment of the iTunes Store, the iTunes Movies and iTunes TV Shows apps are also expected to disappear. Users will still be able to buy movies and TV shows using the Apple TV app. The move is just another step towards putting an end to the iTunes brand, as the iTunes software was removed from the Mac in 2019.

Before the release of the iOS 17.2 beta, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman had already reported that Apple has been working on revamping the TV app and discontinuing the dedicated iTunes Movie Store. On its support website, Apple already recommends users buy movies and TV shows through the TV app.

More about iOS 17.2

iOS 17.2 includes Apple’s new Journal app, first announced at WWDC. There’s also support for collaborative playlists in Apple Music, changes to tapback reactions, and new widgets for Clock and Weather. The update also enables the recording of Spatial Videos for Apple Vision Pro using iPhone 15 Pro.

Users have also noticed that some movies in the Apple TV app now have a “3D” icon ahead of the launch of Vision Pro early next year. 9to5Mac then found references to sideloading in the latest beta.

Apple is expected to release iOS 17.2 to the public by the end of the year.