# TV Shows fully available on Apple TV in Canada now



## ehMax

Last week, us Canadians got a little glimpse of a TV show purchase option on our Apple TV's, although the feature wasn't fully functional. The next day, the option for TV shows disappeared. Last night, Apple flicked the switch and fully turned the feature on and made TV show purchases for Canadians a reality on our Apple TV's with a plethora of content available from a wide variety of networks.








As of writing this, Apple.ca has yet to reflect the changes for their Apple TV features page, but Canadians will find the option now available with content available from big American networks like ABC, NBC, and CBS, but also all the major Canadian networks like CBC, CTV, Global, CityTV, TSN etc... There's tons of speciality channels as well like TLC, Disney Channel and even content from specific organizations like the UFC. 








The release seems to coincide with Apple's *worldwide roll-out of it's iTunes Match* service. Users who click on a show to purchase are greeted with an updated license agreement where a huge portion of the legaleze references iTunes Match. 








​
The new (to Canada) service makes use of Apple's iCloud servers. All the TV Shows you purchase are stored on your iCloud making them not only available for your Apple TV, but your other devices connected to the cloud like your iPad, iPhone and Mac. One of the menu options is "Purchased TV Shows". When I selected this option, I could see previous TV shows I had purchased on my Mac. Some of which I had deleted off my Mac awhile back and forgot about. (Glee was purchased for my wife and daughters, I swear.  )








Pricing for content varies from show to show and many TV series have an option to "Buy a Season Pass" which usually works out to be a bit less expensive than buying each episode individually. Current premium content seems to be consistently $3.49 Cdn for HD and $2.49 Cdn for SD quality, which is priced 50¢ higher than what is charged in the United States. With our dollar being at par with the US, that's a little frustrating. $3.49 for a single episode feels a little too steep for me personally. If I miss an episode of a program I love and didn't set the PVR, I might bite, but not sure I would spend $24.99 just for the entire season of Survivor, where if I wanted to get just one other Season Pass for another series, I'd be close to the cost of my entire cable bill. 

Even with a less expensive Season Pass option, for me personally, it's not really viable for me to cancel my cable TV service from Rogers and get my content solely from my Apple TV. I do really like the access to a lot of specialty content that is of interest. For example, last night I bought a show that was 90 minutes of the best English Premier League soccer goals in HD that was available for $2.99. 

What about you? How much (or how little) will you use this service? Are you excited about the TV show options finally available on your Apple TV in Canada? Post your thoughts in the ehMac forums!


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## Joker Eh

When you say "$3.49 Cdn for HD " is that rental or buy?


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## ehMax

Joker Eh said:


> When you say "$3.49 Cdn for HD " is that rental or buy?


Purchase. There is not rental option.


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## joltguy

This is fantastic news! Anything that opens up new content to Canada or adds value to my AppleTV is a welcome announcement. I'm especially pleased that the shows are stored in iCloud instead of hogging space on my Mac.


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## fjnmusic

I find for eight dollars a month, there's an awful lot of shows I can get from Netflix that I didn't even realize we're available. So that's where I be putting my money right now. Available on Apple TV, iPhone, or any other Apple device.


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## Joker Eh

Ok that is expensive. Most tv shows run between 18-24 episodes per season. That is between $62.82 +tax and $83.76 + tax. WOW. That is one tv series and more than what I pay for cable. Plus the cost of internet bandwidth. Wait a few months get it on Netflix (hopefully) or buy the season on DVD/Bluray for $25.

Shouldn't it be cheaper? The PVR and cable bill still seems to be the cheaper route for current tv content watching. If the tv producers allow cable company customers to use PVR/DVR (what ever you want to call it) and not have to watch commercials why the high cost of these TV shows on Apple TV and why not have them Netflix. I just don't see the difference.


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## iMatt

iTunes prices are taxes-in, but I do agree it's steep and rarely worth the price. 

I guess the idea is that you get to cherry pick what you want instead of paying for a bunch of garbage channels (without the delay of Netflix, and higher quality if I'm not mistaken), and you get to keep a copy (unlike Netflix). 

As for the PVR option, most cable providers sell/rent these for a pretty penny, and roll-your-own is still a pretty daunting geeky project for most people.


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## Joker Eh

iMatt said:


> *iTunes prices are taxes-in*, but I do agree it's steep and rarely worth the price.
> 
> I guess the idea is that you get to cherry pick what you want instead of paying for a bunch of garbage channels (without the delay of Netflix, and higher quality if I'm not mistaken), and you get to keep a copy (unlike Netflix).
> 
> As for the PVR option, most cable providers sell/rent these for a pretty penny, and roll-your-own is still a pretty daunting geeky project for most people.


I don't think so. If I buy some for $0.99 I get charged + taxes as is shown in my receipt from Apple for every purchase.

Also I purchased the PVR because it is not worth renting.


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## iMatt

Just checked my receipts: app (iOS or Mac) prices don't include taxes, but music and video prices do. At least here in Quebec.


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## a7mc

I've had a Boxee Box since it came out, and haven't paid a penny for my TV since. 

I'd love to use my Apple TV for watching shows, but until they offer either a) a $0.99 rental per episode or b) a < $60 subscription for all I can watch, it's a no go for me. I cut cable as soon as the Boxee came out because I refuse to pay for service AND watch commercials. It should be one or the other, not both. 

A7


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## Joker Eh

iMatt said:


> Just checked my receipts: app (iOS or Mac) prices don't include taxes, but music and video prices do. At least here in Quebec.


Doesn't Quebec have GST/HST? I get charged GST/HST for apps in iOS and Mac. But for music I don't.


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## SINC

fjnmusic said:


> I find for eight dollars a month, there's an awful lot of shows I can get from Netflix that I didn't even realize we're available. So that's where I be putting my money right now. Available on Apple TV, iPhone, or any other Apple device.


Agreed. Apple is overcharging for TV shows and they are even worse on their electronic books. I fear they are becoming greedy corporate bas*****. $3.49 is highway robbery. If a song is worth 99c, a TV show originally free over the air isn't worth more than a quarter. Besides, I can watch TV on my Bell satellite (and record them) and get all the old shows I can handle on Netflix and Crackle.


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## cantwait

you guys forgetting about usage caps from isp? dont even the small 3rd party companies outside of bell and rogers have caps?


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## Joker Eh

cantwait said:


> you guys forgetting about usage caps from isp? dont even the small 3rd party companies outside of bell and rogers have caps?


You mean my cap of 100GB, not worried. And if you want some 3rd party providers have packages that have no limit.

If you have a 15GB limit like my girlfriend, well you can't do anything on it anyways. I have told her to upgrade to at least the next level which is 60GB and 4 times faster for $11 more per month


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## iMatt

Joker Eh said:


> Doesn't Quebec have GST/HST? I get charged GST/HST for apps in iOS and Mac. But for music I don't.


Right. We have GST + a PST that's itemized but in effect harmonized.

With apps, the taxes aren't included in the price shown in the app store (Mac or iOS).

With music, TV, movies the price shown includes taxes. So, again, agreed that $3.49 is really steep for a TV show, but it is the taxes-in price.


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## Sonal

My first question is that to wonder if they make shows available based on when they air in the USA, or when they air in Canada?

I make an effort to watch maybe 4 shows regularly, and two of them air in the US several weeks before they air in Canada.


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## Eric S

I've been looking for an alternative to netflix. I have a love hate relationship with them


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## Sonal

Sonal said:


> My first question is that to wonder if they make shows available based on when they air in the USA, or when they air in Canada?
> 
> I make an effort to watch maybe 4 shows regularly, and two of them air in the US several weeks before they air in Canada.


Answered my own question, I think: when they air in Canada. Never mind then, not for me.


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## hayesk

Joker Eh said:


> Ok that is expensive. Most tv shows run between 18-24 episodes per season. That is between $62.82 +tax and $83.76 + tax. WOW. That is one tv series and more than what I pay for cable.


No, that is more than what you pay for one month of cable. You can't get a full season of shows on one month of cable. But I hear you - if you watch more than six shows, it's too expensive.


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## Tech Elementz

Joker Eh said:


> Doesn't Quebec have GST/HST? I get charged GST/HST for apps in iOS and Mac. But for music I don't.


Quebec has their own sales tax. QST


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## ehMax

I wish Apple had a model like Netflix. For $8 a month, you can watch as much as you want. The content is not great, but it's ok. 

Apple has a lot more content on iTunes, so I'd be willing to pay quite a bit more. Probably even around $50 a month, if I had a la carte access to watch anything I wanted to on my Apple TV, iPhone and Mac. That would be awesome.


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## monokitty

ehMax said:


> I wish Apple had a model like Netflix. For $8 a month, you can watch as much as you want. The content is not great, but it's ok.
> 
> Apple has a lot more content on iTunes, so I'd be willing to pay quite a bit more. Probably even around $50 a month, if I had a la carte access to watch anything I wanted to on my Apple TV, iPhone and Mac. That would be awesome.


This.


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## Glipt

"YIKES!!" That's insane. Do they realize the alternative is free? Netflix at least is reasonable. So reasonable that even the biggest pirates I know are more than happy to pay for it. This must be a case of the networks wanting to charge exorbitant prices (even though they seem to put their shows up on live streaming for free). I can't imagine anybody but the very rich going for this.


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## Oakbridge

No the alternative is not free. The alternative is to wait until the end of the season and buy the DVD at $40-70 per season. Boardwalk Empire (SD version) is available for $35 for the season on iTunes, but it is over $50 on DVD. Same with other shows. 

Netflix is not an alternative because it doesn't have current seasons of shows. And when you stop paying your Netflix subscription, you no longer have access to your shows. 

You're trying to compare what iTunes is offering to 'renting' a show and it is not a valid comparison.


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## Glipt

While I am not recommending it by 'Free Alternative' I meant torrents. That is what iTunes really has to compete with. My point was that even the torrenters find Netflix to be a good enough deal that they pay for it even though they are used to grabbing everything for free off torrents.


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## Oakbridge

Glipt said:


> While I am not recommending it by 'Free Alternative' I meant torrents. That is what iTunes really has to compete with. My point was that even the torrenters find Netflix to be a good enough deal that they pay for it even though they are used to grabbing everything for free off torrents.


No I don't think that the current setup of iTunes does have to compete with Torrents or Netflix. That's like saying a Mac has to compete with a $400 Windows machine, it is not the same thing. Netflix is rental, not ownership. 

Unfortunately as we have found out with content on the iTunes Store here in Canada, there are a lot of different layers that have to be sifted through before we may see any form of change. The fact that we are restricted here in Canada from using the PBS iPad app for many shows, yet those of us within distance of the US border can pick up PBS stations for free is an example of some of the restrictions. 

While I would love a good solution to the current fiasco that is television broadcasting here in Canada, and I'd love for Apple to provide us with a solution that is as good for the end user as the iPod, iPhone and iPad have been, I am not holding my breath.


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## Jason H

Oakbridge said:


> No the alternative is not free. The alternative is to wait until the end of the season and buy the DVD at $40-70 per season. Boardwalk Empire (SD version) is available for $35 for the season on iTunes, but it is over $50 on DVD. Same with other shows.
> 
> Netflix is not an alternative because it doesn't have current seasons of shows. And when you stop paying your Netflix subscription, you no longer have access to your shows.
> 
> You're trying to compare what iTunes is offering to 'renting' a show and it is not a valid comparison.


BUT 6 months later when that dvd is sitting in the bargain bin for $19.99 it'll still be $35 on iTunes. 12 months later the dvd will be $15 and iTunes will still be $35.


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## dona83

Too bad purchased movies don't stream like purchased TV shows.


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## jimbotelecom

I'm glad the option for going to specific shows is there. But the price is silly.

At most they should charge $1 per viewing.

I don't think this is Apple's fault I think the big studios and networks still have stifling egos leading them and insist on high prices.

Meanwhile so much of what they produce is "freely" available as noted by others through torrents and fileshare hosts. So much so that you often have leaked digital copies of productions in circulation before screenings and broadcast dates.

Then you have to factor in that there are millions of consumers disconnecting TV cable and satellite feeds into their homes because they can get everything they require using the internet - commercial free.

In time the pricing will come down because it has to.


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## Oakbridge

Jason H said:


> BUT 6 months later when that dvd is sitting in the bargain bin for $19.99 it'll still be $35 on iTunes. 12 months later the dvd will be $15 and iTunes will still be $35.


Again this is incorrect. Mad Men is currently on iTunes for $19.95. In fact Apple has a regular section on the main page of iTunes that lists discounted TV seasons. It's how I originally got into Mad Men a few years ago.


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## Oakbridge

jimbotelecom said:


> I'm glad the option for going to specific shows is there. But the price is silly.
> 
> At most they should charge $1 per viewing.
> 
> I don't think this is Apple's fault I think the big studios and networks still have stifling egos leading them and insist on high prices.
> 
> Meanwhile so much of what they produce is "freely" available as noted by others through torrents and fileshare hosts. So much so that you often have leaked digital copies of productions in circulation before screenings and broadcast dates.
> 
> Then you have to factor in that there are millions of consumers disconnecting TV cable and satellite feeds into their homes because they can get everything they require using the internet - commercial free.
> 
> In time the pricing will come down because it has to.


Again you're comparing the price to own vs. the price for a one time viewing. Apple tried TV show rentals and for whatever reason, they took it away. 

And I can't believe you're comparing torrents and fileshare hosts to anything legitimate. I don't want to get into a discussion on whether they are technically illegal or not, but morally they are wrong. As you said yourself, at times they 'leak'. 

I agree that TV distribution in Canada desperately requires an overhaul. We've got more channels than ever yet as we get into the mid-season hiatus for shows, it becomes even more apparent that…

"there's 57 channels and nothin on"


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## dona83

You can't get online and free without commercials (legitimately). They always insert ads at the usual spots. 

However I tried playing shows from the Global Video app onto my Apple TV via Airplay, there are just 45 seconds of commercials and they're all at the right volume. The app itself is a bit buggy, that's my only complaint.

And there are some real gems on the iTunes stores worth getting anyway. The Sci-Fi series Eureka for example, only $17.99-$19.99 a season SD, +$5 for HD. Odd that the Apple TV only gives the option of buying the SD feed, even though it can stream HD movies.


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## Lawrence

ehMax said:


> I wish Apple had a model like Netflix. For $8 a month, you can watch as much as you want. The content is not great, but it's ok.
> 
> Apple has a lot more content on iTunes, so I'd be willing to pay quite a bit more. Probably even around $50 a month, if I had a la carte access to watch anything I wanted to on my Apple TV, iPhone and Mac. That would be awesome.


Having just bought a 40" Samsung Smart TV, I agree,
Apple TV really needs to extend an olive branch.

Even if they offered free local programs and then charged for main events,
Like sports and first run movies, Then I'd go for a membership.
But, As it is, I'm not busting my bank account to watch very much and buy apps as well,
Something has got to give eventually, Can't charge money for everything, It's bad for business.


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## Jason H

Lawrence said:


> Having just bought a 40" Samsung Smart TV, I agree,
> Apple TV really needs to extend an olive branch.
> 
> Even if they offered free local programs and then charged for main events,
> Like sports and first run movies, Then I'd go for a membership.
> But, As it is, I'm not busting my bank account to watch very much and buy apps as well,
> Something has got to give eventually, Can't charge money for everything, It's bad for business.


Local Programs Exist?


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## Lawrence

Jason H said:


> Local Programs Exist?


Canadian TV stations are listed on my Apple TV,
Just not so sure if I want to pay for the programs that are on them.

You won't find Newscasts, or weather, Just TV show episodes or seasons for rent.


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## Oakbridge

*Interesting Development*

Apple now has 'Complete My Season' available. For some TV shows that you've purchased single episodes, you can choose to complete the season in the same way we've been able to complete the purchase of an album. 

Also as of today, all 9 episodes of Pan Am are available for free on iTunes.


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## iMatt

Oakbridge said:


> Also as of today, all 9 episodes of Pan Am are available for free on iTunes.


Pan AM? That's not a TV show, it's a torture device.


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## Joker Eh

Oakbridge said:


> Apple now has 'Complete My Season' available. For some TV shows that you've purchased single episodes, you can choose to complete the season in the same way we've been able to complete the purchase of an album.
> 
> Also as of today, all 9 episodes of Pan Am are available for free on iTunes.


Crap I would have liked to get this for my girlfriend she has wanted to watch this. Just checked it is not free anymore


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## monokitty

iMatt said:


> Pan AM? That's not a TV show, it's a torture device.


Hahaha. This.


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## Oakbridge

iMatt said:


> Pan AM? That's not a TV show, it's a torture device.


Hey don't shoot the messenger. I was just offering an example.


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## Oakbridge

Joker Eh said:


> Crap I would have liked to get this for my girlfriend she has wanted to watch this. Just checked it is not free anymore


My apologies. I've got both Canadian and US iTunes accounts. It's free on the US side.


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## Joker Eh

Oakbridge said:


> My apologies. I've got both Canadian and US iTunes accounts. It's free on the US side.


Double Crap.


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## dona83

You can open up a US iTunes account pretty easily.

Or watch it for free on ctv.ca

My wife quickly lost interest in this show.


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## Daniel911

yotmei said:


> The Iphone Dream - YouTube


There are OTHER ways to get people to view a video besides randomly spamming multiple threads on a forum.

Seems like a good way to get a "Dislike" vote once they DO view it.

-Daniel


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