Apple confirms fix to series box set playback issues on Apple TV app is coming

Posted:
in General Discussion edited October 2020
If you've been experiencing issues playing seasons of your favorite shows in the Apple TV app with Siri -- you're not alone, and Apple is already working on a fix.

Apple confirms they are working to fix Apple TV box set playback issues


Under certain circumstances, the Apple TV app has been having issues playing certain types of content. The most well-known example is the inability to play content purchased as part of a digital box set.

When a user attempts to play content from a box set by searching or querying Siri, they are prompted to buy single seasons or episodes that they already own. For some content, Siri would suggest the user subscribe to HBO Max.

Sigmund Judge took to Twitter to chronicle well-known, ongoing issues with playing box sets via the Apple TV app, as well as how to fix the problem.

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Apple's TV app has issues cataloging some box sets with search, Siri playback and purchases not recognised. Last week I bought The Big Bang Theory: The Complete Series' on iTunes with the express goal of fixing the box-set. Here's how to get a fix within the TV app... pic.twitter.com/VxCBr7flAz

-- Sigmund Judge (@sigjudge)


The issue tends to affect users attempting to play "outdated" box sets -- specifically box sets that have been updated by the distributor to include additional seasons. Also involved are box sets that are available to stream on other services, such as HBO Max. Judge, and iMore highlight "The Big Bang Theory" as a well-known offender. Similar issues have affected users who have purchased older movies and shows that have been removed, like a partial box set of an incomplete series, or updated in the storefront.

However, a purchaser should still able to play the content by playing the purchase through the Library, or using the Siri Remote controls -- and not Siri itself -- to play the content.

After Judge reached out to Apple with the issues he and others had found, the company confirmed that its engineering team is working on a fix.

Users who are currently experiencing issues are encouraged to reach out to their Apple Support Advisor via Apple Support on iOS. He provides a helpful walkthrough in the tweet below.

To fix any of these types of issues DON'T go to https://t.co/hX7U2LM7CC (they really can only issue refunds). Get screen shots ready for evidence.

In the Apple Support App on iOS choose:

More Products > iTunes Store > Subscriptions & Purchases > Describe Your Issue pic.twitter.com/uUFunmAPje

-- Sigmund Judge (@sigjudge)


"In the description say: 'Key TV app functionality is broken for [title box set ] on all devices,'" Judge says in a follow-up tweet. "This is important so that the Apple Support Advisor knows that this isn't device specific but is in regard to the TV app itself."

He also points out that the process could take upwards of 45 minutes and will need to be repeated for each affected purchase, but appears hopeful that Apple's engineers will soon fix the problem for all shows and films.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 7
    I’ve been complaining to Apple for years that their approach to TV box sets makes no sense.

    They should mirror the movie bundle approach where buying the bundle actually registers as buying “x” number of movies at the same time. Surely, it’s not rocket science to create pages in the iTunes Store which enable the sale of multiple TV Show playlists? At the end of the day, a TV Season registers as a video playlist in iTunes (Apple TV app).
    lkrupp
  • Reply 2 of 7
    14.2 update broke my apple dolby atmos   
  • Reply 3 of 7
    Mike WuertheleMike Wuerthele Posts: 6,861administrator
    tracy1 said:
    14.2 update broke my apple dolby atmos   
    Betas will do that.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 7
    Not sure what causes it, but some TV series purchased from Apple will not be organized into separate seasons after you've clicked on the show icon in the Apple TV app. It will just list every episode you have in numerical/alphabetical order. My guess is that perhaps older purchases don't have the same metadata attached to the file and can't be organized properly as a result.  
    edited October 2020 unbeliever2watto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 7
    Not sure what causes it, but some TV series purchased from Apple will not be organized into separate seasons after you've clicked on the show icon in the Apple TV app. It will just list every episode you have in numerical/alphabetical order. My guess is that perhaps older purchases don't have the same metadata attached to the file and can't be organized properly as a result.  
    This. I have this problem with the X-Files, Only one season is properly organized into a season folder, to find any other episode I have to scroll through all 100+ episodes, it's so annoying.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 7
    Not sure what causes it, but some TV series purchased from Apple will not be organized into separate seasons after you've clicked on the show icon in the Apple TV app. It will just list every episode you have in numerical/alphabetical order. My guess is that perhaps older purchases don't have the same metadata attached to the file and can't be organized properly as a result.  
    This. I have this problem with the X-Files, Only one season is properly organized into a season folder, to find any other episode I have to scroll through all 100+ episodes, it's so annoying.
    Indeed. Also the reason why I have never bought a box set from Apple because I suspected a problem would occur, especially with a store front that is so heavily dependent on correctly programmed meta data. So I buy individual seasons when my price monitoring app tells me they have come down.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 7 of 7
    The TV app in Catalina and Big Sur is heavily crippled.  You cannot search for, view, or buy any complete series box sets or movie bundles or discounted bundles/box sets. You can only buy them using iTunes, AppleTV box, or iOS device.  I’ve reported this problem since Catalina.  Also, it would be great if you bought a complete series box set and AppleTV and iTunes would organize them by their individual seasons, not a single season 0 with over 200+ episodes to scroll through.  

    Also, the TV app is so bad that it cannot even figure out that I use my AppleID to pay for CBS All Access.  So anytime a show appears on CBS AA in the TV app, it wants me to buy a subscription, and no option to log into my account or restore my iTunes purchase for that device.  The new CBS app is way better anyway.  
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