Rented a Movie in iTunes on iMac, but want to watch it with AppleTV

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Rented a Movie in iTunes on iMac, but want to watch it with AppleTV

I rented a movie in iTunes on my iMac. But now, I would like to watch this movie with my AppleTV (newest generation).

Following http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1657 this should be possible:

If you download a rented movie on your computer: You can transfer it to a device such as your Apple TV (1st generation), iPhone, iPad, or iPod if it’s a standard-definition film (movies in HD can only be watched on your computer, iPad, iPhone 4 or later, iPod touch (4th generation or later), or Apple TV). Once you move the movie from your computer to a device, the movie will disappear from your computer's iTunes library. You can move the movie between devices as many times as you wish during the rental period, but the movie can only exist on one device at a time.

But what are the steps to get in running on my AppleTV?

Thanks for any advice,

Adrian

Apple TV, iOS 5.1.1

Posted on Sep 4, 2012 7:25 AM

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Answer 1

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vazandrew

Level 8

40,366 points

Sep 4, 2012 10:02 AM in response to aedu

You need to use home-sharing.

In iTunes go to advanced - turn on home sharing. Go into settings on Apple TV and enable as well.

Then go to the computers section on Apple TV (computer needs to be on and running iTunes) and you will see a section for rentals.

You can also rent directly on Apple TV

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4352

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Answer 2

aedu Author

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Sep 5, 2012 5:59 AM in response to vazandrew

Thank you! You're absolutely right.

But first, I had to restart iTunes on my iMac. After that, the "Rentals" section was visible on the AppleTV's home-sharing screen...

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Answer 3

vazandrew

Level 8

40,366 points

Sep 5, 2012 6:31 AM in response to aedu

No problem. Enjoy!

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Answer 4

Jan 18, 2014 11:46 AM in response to vazandrew

Important to note that you actually have to download the file onto your computer before this can work. You wouldn't think that would be the case since, I am assuming, it is being streamed directly from Apple's servers.

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Answer 5

vazandrew

Level 8

40,366 points

Jan 18, 2014 1:09 PM in response to neutralmonist

Note that you are responding to thread from over a year ago.

The computer requires download, if you want to stream you can rent directly on ATV.

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Answer 6

Jan 18, 2014 6:08 PM in response to vazandrew

Sorry, what I was attempting to clarify was this:

You can rent the movie on your desktop but in order to watch it on your ATV you will have to turn on Home Sharing and download the movie to your desktop, only then will the rented movie appear on your ATV under Home Sharing.

Either this is a flaw in the software or part of a copyright arrangement. If you purchase a movie, then it will appear under Movies > Purchased on the ATV, for some reason rentals do not. If this is software related then it should be fixed at some point. Although the original thread is from over a year ago, the problem persists. Renting on the ATV directly is not optimal since the file is not transferable to any other device, presumably b/c there is no file? But that shouldn't matter. All that should matter is: this Apple ID purchased this item > it should be available on all devices associated w/that Apple ID.

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Answer 7

vazandrew

Level 8

40,366 points

Jan 18, 2014 9:30 PM in response to neutralmonist

The only device that can stream is the Apple TV as there is no storage. The rental is not transferrable if done on any device other than a computer, due to copyright agreement. It can also only be on one device at a time for the same reason.

If it is a rental, it is not a purchased item. Only purchases are stored in the cloud and can be reloaded or streamed from the cloud on an ATV. Note: that if they are removed from the iTunes store they will no longer be available so it is important to keep backups.

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