Without a prior warning, Microsoft has removed the ability to buy movies and television on Xbox consoles and Windows devices today.
The surprised movement was first noticed by fans when Microsoft published Questions and answers describing the changes in detail – because they were already alive.
Previously sold movie and television content can still be watched and you can still apply your Xbox to play the media such as DVD and Blu-ray. But fans of film and television will no longer be able to add to their digital libraries, they will not be able to transfer content to other services, and no phrases will be transferred if you want to assist rebuild the library elsewhere.
On consoles, the sudden character of today’s store closing can be seen that the Xbox market still contains movies and television sections, although these areas of the store are now completely empty. Presumably, they will now be fully removed through the future console update.
Microsoft did not give a reason why he decided to end the sale of film and television content, although as streaming subscription services, such as Netflix, Amazon Prime and Disney+, increased, this influenced the ownership of digital media.
Meanwhile, for those who still want to have content, collectors still buy elderly physical media, which can be burdensome, but comes without fear of requirement for internet communication or long-term services.
If you try to access movies and television stores on Xbox, these are only errors after sudden closing Microsoft today https://t.co/rpcrmx7w9f pic.twitter.com/sbhmseuosh
– Tom Warren (@Tomwarren) July 18, 2025
In response, as part of its own questions, Microsoft basically speaks similarly to its decision – and now it simply indicates users elsewhere.
“Store Xbox and Microsoft in Windows have other entertainment services that offer the latest editions of home entertainment,” says Microsoft. “The following transaction services are available today: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV and Fandango at home.”
Although maybe this is not the most popular method of having digital content, the sudden nature of the service closing the service by Microsoft raised the eyebrows. The change will take place only a few weeks after the last round of Microsoft’s dismissals, when about 4%or just over 9,000 employees were cut throughout the company.
Image loan: Adobe shares.
Tom Phillips is the editor of Ign. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on BlueSky @tomphillipseg.bsky.Social
