Disney Movies Anywhere lands on Android for multi-platform fun

By JC Torres/Nov. 4, 2014 4:30 am EST

Disney has just made a rather unprecedented move that would surely delight fans of its many films and franchises, including its Pixar and Marvel subsidiaries. It has truly put the "anywhere" in its Disney Movies Anywhere by making the app available on Google's mobile platform. Now users will be able to buy and view movies such as Maleficent, Frozen, Toy Story, Captain America, just to mention a few of the 450 titles from Disney's collection no matter their preferred mobile platform, whether they are on iOS or on Android.

Disney's new partnership with Google is both logical and pioneering. No matter which side of the OS fence you stand in, there is no denying that Android takes up a huge share of the mobile market today. It is, therefore, no surprise that Disney would want to cater to this crowd as well. However, the move is also somewhat unprecedented because it is quite rare for a content provider to offer unified access across rival platforms.

That last bit is one of the biggest hurdles in the adoption of digital content as the preferred format for consumption. Some viewers still cling to physical media like DVD's and Blu-ray's for fear of being locked to a specific provider or distributor that may or may not be available on either iOS or Android. Now users will have no worries that any movie that they buy from the iTunes store or from Google Play Movies or from Disney Movies Anywhere itself will suddenly be inaccessible if any of Disney's partnerships go sour.

iOS users might already be familiar with the process, but here's how it goes for those living in Google's world. Android users will need to download the Disney Movies Anywhere app, from Google Play Store, of course and then link the app with their Google Play account. That's all there is to it. As an added incentive to those just joining in on the fun, Disney is offering Wreck It Ralph for free for anyone connecting their DMA account to either their iTunes or Google Play identities.

VIA: TechCrunch