Apple says it’ll fix the TV app’s inability to play content purchased as part of a digital boxset

Apple’s TV app on the iPhone, iPad and Mac is plagued with a longstanding problem — the inability to play series boxsets — but the company is aware of it and readying a fix.

Specifically, some people have not been able to play seasons of certain TV shows using the TV app and Siri or by searching in the TV app. The problem plagues some TV shows bought as part of a digital boxset. In certain cases, Siri suggested subscribing to HBO Max instead, a sign that the system mistakenly thinks that the user does not own the content in question.

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When a user attempts to play content from a boxset by searching or querying Siri, they’re prompted to buy single seasons or episodes they already own. For some content, Siri would suggest a user subscribe to HBO Max. The problem affects the TV app on all Apple devices.

AppleInsider describes the issue in greater detail:

The issue tends to affect users attempting to play outdated boxsets that have been updated by the distributor to include additional seasons. Also involved are boxsets that are available to stream on other services, such as HBO Max. 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.

iMore highlighted “The Big Bang Theory” as a well-known offender.

Sigmund Judge says Apple’s now confirmed that a fix is coming. Judge advised in a subsequent tweet that people don’t reach out to Apple support via reportaproblem.apple.com. Instead, screenshot the problem and open the Apple Support app, then tap More Products → iTunes Store → Subscriptions & Purchases → Describe Your Issue.