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Use this trick to watch Google Play movies on your Apple TV

Your movie and TV purchases aren't as trapped into Google's ecosystem as you might have thought. This trick works for iPhones and iPads, too.

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rickbroida
Rick Broida Senior Editor
Rick Broida is the author of numerous books and thousands of reviews, features and blog posts. He writes CNET's popular Cheapskate blog and co-hosts Protocol 1: A Travelers Podcast (about the TV show Travelers). He lives in Michigan, where he previously owned two escape rooms (chronicled in the ebook "I Was a Middle-Aged Zombie").
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No Google Play Movies app on your Apple TV? No problem: Use the YouTube app instead.

 Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET

Apple TV owners had cause to celebrate last month when Apple announced the totally unexpected arrival of an Amazon Prime Video app.

Can a Google Play app be far behind? It seems pretty unlikely, but never say never.

Fortunately, there's already a way to watch your Google purchases on your Apple TV. You don't need to jailbreak anything, nor even do an end-run around any terms-of-service agreements.

Instead, if I may paraphrase one of my favorite "Simpsons" lines: There's no trick to it; it's just a simple trick. (And there's a hint right in that link.)

First, fire up your Apple TV and load the YouTube app. Select My YouTube, then sign into your account if you haven't already. (This requires a one-time activation, which can be one via phone, tablet or PC.)

Now scroll down until you find the Purchases section. Presto! You just found all the movies and TV shows you ever purchased from Google Play. And you can play them right on your Apple TV, no fuss, no muss.

This trick works on other iOS devices as well, namely iPhones and iPads. Of course, it's not as necessary given that Google Play Movies is already available.