If there was a movie or show you were looking to pick up on yourXboxor through theMicrosoftStore, you’ve missed your chance.
As of today, July 18,Microsoft has officially ended sales and rentals of TV shows and movies through their various storefront apps,the company announced through anarticleon the Xbox support site.
Anything already purchased is still available through the Movies and TV app on Xbox, and they can still be downloaded, albeit only on Windows.
Various streaming apps are also still available through both the Microsoft Store on Xbox and Windows.
Microsoft, Xbox, And Their Continued Downward Spiral
According to thesupport page, the cancellation of movie and TV sales has gone into effect on all their various storefronts, including their own website and the Microsoft Store on both Windows and Xbox.
We don’t know exactly what drove this decision from Microsoft, but it’s no secret that the company’sXbox division is in a dire state at the moment.
There have beenmultiple waves of layoffs across the companyover the last few months, with the most recent and highest-profile oneaffecting around 9000 peopleand leading tothe cancellation of multiple gamesfrom various Microsoft-owned studios.
There are even reports of the aftershocks of the layoffs being felt outside Microsoft itself,by external companies contracted by themas their funding has suddenly been pulled.
Meanwhile,Microsoft seems to be going all in on AI, even going so far as totry to replace real, human developers with it.
Xbox Fans Left Stunned As One Fan-Favorite Game Is Now Gone Permanently
One of the last true Xbox exclusives is now gone for good on any Xbox console.
Whatever Microsoft’s reasons for suddenly no longer selling movies and TV series on their storefronts may be, it’s understandably frustrating for anyone who’s been building up a collection since the service launched as Xbox Video back in 2012.
Now, they’ll need to look elsewhere for digital purchases, splitting their library up over multiple different platforms, with the only options left from the Microsoft storefronts being third-party streaming services.
It’s all part of major corporations’ongoing effort to kill ownership of media, as nebulous as the concept of ownership of digital media has always been.
At least anything that’s already been purchased can still be viewed through the Movies and TV app and downloaded (at least on Windows), but it will always be haunted by the looming question of how long the app and downloads will be supported before they get shut down, as they have been on Xbox 360. It’s only a matter of time.
