Apple Working to Add Movies to iCloud - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

Apple Working to Add Movies to iCloud

ipad 2 displayThe LATimes and Wall Street Journal are both reporting that Apple is working to finalize deals with major movie studios that would allow iTunes customers to stream purchased movies to their devices.

Apple Inc. is negotiating with Hollywood studios for deals that would let people who buy movies from the iTunes Store watch streaming versions of those movies on Apple devices such as iPads or iPhones without manually transferring them, according to people familiar with the matter.

With the launch of iCloud and associated services, Apple has started allowing iTunes customers to freely redownload both music and TV shows to any of their devices.

Even in the weeks leading up to the original iCloud announcement, we'd heard reports that Apple had been in deep negotiations with movie studios to provide just that sort of service. One of the hurdles at the time was reported to be the special exclusivity deals that the studios have with HBO. Those agreements would prevent the sale or distribution of movies while they were being aired on HBO. It's not clear how that conflict will be resolved.

Popular Stories

macOS 27 on MacBook Pro

Apple Says macOS 27 Won't Be Compatible With These Macs

Wednesday June 3, 2026 8:29 am PDT by
During WWDC 2025, Apple revealed that macOS 26 Tahoe would be the final major macOS version for Intel-based Macs. macOS 27 will be compatible with Apple silicon Macs only, meaning that you will need a Mac with an M-series chip or a MacBook Neo with an A18 Pro chip in order to install the software update. Apple will unveil macOS 27 during its WWDC 2026 keynote this Monday, June 8, and the...
MacBook Neo on Yellow Feature

MacBook Neo is So Popular That Apple Reportedly Doubled Production

Wednesday June 3, 2026 9:24 am PDT by
On an earnings call in late April, Apple's CEO Tim Cook said that customer response to the MacBook Neo was "off the charts," and the popularity of the laptop has reportedly led the company to significantly boost production. Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo this week said he believes that MacBook Neo shipments to Apple were doubled from an initial target of 5 million units to 10...
iphone 18 pro blue%402x

iPhone 18 Pro: Dark Cherry, Light Blue, and Dark Gray Chassis Leaked [Update]

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:18 am PDT by
Update: Since publication, new information has come to light suggesting the images have been AI-manipulated and are not in fact iPhone 18 Pro chassis parts. The original article follows. The color options Apple is reportedly planning for the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max have appeared online today in the form of images of chassis parts of unknown authenticity....

Top Rated Comments

191 months ago
Can someone explain to me why Apple needs agreements with the production companies to stream movies from their servers to users who have purchased the content? Once purchased, is it not the user's right to consume the media however s/he wants, whether the file is stored locally or remotely and streamed?
This would definitely be awesome. I too would buy more movies from iTunes if this happened.
Royalty laws. And I'm not talking crowns here. Apple's licensing agreement with the aforementioned studios may limit the number of times a certain person is allowed to download a particular movie, or what devices they can view it on. They could also restrict the manner in which it's transmitted. I will admit that I'm only guessing here, but some sort of "fine print" type deal is probably the reason. I do agree that it's ridiculous though, but if you want to point the finger somewhere, point it firmly in the direction of royalties and copyrights.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Thanatoast Avatar
191 months ago
This should not even be an issue. It's patently ridiculous that the studios even have the right to not allow this.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
191 months ago
Can someone explain to me why Apple needs agreements with the production companies to stream movies from their servers to users who have purchased the content? Once purchased, is it not the user's right to consume the media however s/he wants, whether the file is stored locally or remotely and streamed?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
191 months ago
A little TOO ambitious! Get my phone working first - sheesh! iMessages don't work, auto-synching doesn't work. (with power)
Those things have all been working for me since beta 4? Pleased to meet you chief strategist of Apple, Inc. :rolleyes:
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
OrangeSVTguy Avatar
191 months ago
Now we really need the unlimited data plans back instead of this tiered bs!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ravenvii Avatar
191 months ago
Streaming would be cool and all, but I would be perfectly happy with being able to re-download movies like I can re-download apps, music and TV shows. That provides a *great* peace of mind in event of data loss.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)