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skrutzen

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 3, 2007
108
2
Yesterday (2/15), I rented Resident Evil: Extinction in HD around 3pm. I actually started to watch it around 4am this morning (2/16). I fell asleep, woke up around 11:15 am, and attempted to finish the movie, and the apple tv told me that the rental had expired and I could no longer watch it. So, not even 12 hrs later, I didn't have a movie I that I rented. I saw 10 minutes of it. I lost $5. That's unacceptable. It's a clear breach of contract on Apple's part.

I did report the problem but seeing as complaints are only one way with iTunes, I feel I'm gonna get screwed.

BTW: What little I got to see of it, the image quality and sound were great.
 
That sucks, I would have attempted to contact Apple personally about this, a better chance of getting an actual response/reimbursement.
 
In your itunes account under purchase history you can select the item and report a problem.
They will usually refund you your purchase or let you re download.

Thats how it worked with songs anyway
 
another rental that didn't work...

I rented a movie this morning (HD Title) and hit the download button so it would be ready for this evening. It showed up in the Rented Movies area, but when I sat down ready to view it... it popped up with a message telling me the title had expired and was no longer available for viewing. That's less than 12 hours from the time I "rented" it, and it never even began to play before it disappeared. ver .90 ? I'd think with the delay they'd made sure this basic operation type stuff was rock solid.. and 24 hrs is about 24hrs too short anyway - this should be on par with Blockbuster - 48hrs. I'm a loyal apple loving kinda guy, but this kinda blows.
 
Does anybody know if movies that are rented in :apple:TV show up on the Recent Purchases or whatever in iTunes on your computer? Because if they do, then click the button that says "Report a Problem", or when they send you the receipt in an email, then click the link there.
 
Yes " They show up in recent purchases

Does anybody know if movies that are rented in :apple:TV show up on the Recent Purchases or whatever in iTunes on your computer? Because if they do, then click the button that says "Report a Problem", or when they send you the receipt in an email, then click the link there.

yes, the movies you purchase on your ATV show up in your itunes account as recent purchases, and yes I was able to click on the magic "report a problem" link. The bummer is when your popcorn is ready, everyone is sitting on the couch and your rental takes a dump... you're left wishing you'd stopped at Blockbuster instead...same price, much longer rental period.
 
I just downloaded the Simpsons Movie and it was pretty painless. At the end of the movie, it has 22 hours left before expiration. I'll check it again tomorrow and see if I can watch it.
 
I did report the problem right away so we'll see what happens. I rented another HD movie tonight and watched it with the girlfriend. No issues whatsoever.

Also, as a side-note, a few months back I had a "Song of the Day" track that I tried to download and wasn't able to because I got some error with the store. I reported it and forgot about it. On Friday, I got an email from iTunes that was offering me a free download of Michael Jackson's "Thriller" video that I just purchased a couple of weeks ago. It was the remastered version that I guess they are offering it to customers who purchased the old one. Well, I was like, "Cool, a better quality version. I'll take it!" I clicked on the link and it instantly downloads... along with the free "Song of the Day" track that I had an issue with a few months back!

I hope I don't have to wait 3 or 4 months for a credit or free rental of Resident Evil: Extinction.
 
I have rented 3 HD movies and have had no problem. In fact I rented 2 Lastnight and just let them download. The chuck and Larry movie and "no reservations" for the wife. We watched Chuck and Larry thismorning with no issue. We will watch "no reservations" tonight. Both downloaded fine, it pauses one download while the other downloads then continues downloading the other after the first is done.
 
That was awesome!

I just checked my email and I got a reply from apple, stating that they've given me another download of Resident Evil: Extinction. So I just fired up my :apple:TV and there it was, already downloaded and ready to watch! I have to say I am thoroughly impressed with their service and timely response.

This is why I buy Apple products.

BTW: I got the email at 10am and I just checked my email. So they had me taken care of within 48hrs.
 
Thanks for the follow up. Many people start threads and never reply with the positive result given from Apple.

Glad to hear you got the movie back. Enjoy, RS:3 was pretty cool :D
 
Anytime.

I was incorrect about the turnaround time. They fixed it in less than 24hrs! I sent the email around 11:30 am yesterday, and I got a response at 9:52 am this morning! That's quick!
 
iTunes movie rentals blows. I rented a movie and it took 6 hours to download. Steve Jobs said that you could start watching it in 30 seconds. It just lagged like crazy when i tried to watch it while it was still downloading.

Plus 24 hrs for a movie rental is way too short. I rented pirates and didnt have enough time to finish it. :(
 
iTunes movie rentals blows. I rented a movie and it took 6 hours to download. Steve Jobs said that you could start watching it in 30 seconds. It just lagged like crazy when i tried to watch it while it was still downloading.

Plus 24 hrs for a movie rental is way too short. I rented pirates and didnt have enough time to finish it. :(

BE SURE to report a problem with it. The more people that complain, the quicker it will get fixed. Apple responds to the community if they don't like something. examples: Menu transparency in 10.5.2, list view in dock for 10.5.2, iPhone rebate, etc..
 
iTunes movie rentals blows. I rented a movie and it took 6 hours to download. Steve Jobs said that you could start watching it in 30 seconds. It just lagged like crazy when i tried to watch it while it was still downloading.

Plus 24 hrs for a movie rental is way too short. I rented pirates and didnt have enough time to finish it. :(

The 24 hour clock starts from when you press play. You have 30 days to press play.

Knowing that, why would you start watching it if you dont have time to finish watching it?
 
iTunes movie rentals blows. I rented a movie and it took 6 hours to download. Steve Jobs said that you could start watching it in 30 seconds. It just lagged like crazy when i tried to watch it while it was still downloading.

Plus 24 hrs for a movie rental is way too short. I rented pirates and didnt have enough time to finish it. :(
Also, he said that on a good broadband connection, you will be able to begin watching in 30 seconds, that means that enough of the video will be loaded to begin watching, not that the entire movie will be downloaded. The average movie would probably take about an hour to download at least. And HD movies would take even longer.
 
iTunes movie rentals blows. I rented a movie and it took 6 hours to download. Steve Jobs said that you could start watching it in 30 seconds. It just lagged like crazy when i tried to watch it while it was still downloading.

Plus 24 hrs for a movie rental is way too short. I rented pirates and didnt have enough time to finish it. :(

what kind of internet connection do you have? (i.e. what speed?)
 
iTunes movie rentals blows. I rented a movie and it took 6 hours to download.

Sounds like an Internet connection issue to me. I'm not getting those download times. The only issue I've had is renting a movie and then watching a TV show on the :apple:TV. It seems to stop the download and starts again when I stop watching. Now I just order a rental and walk away. Downloads a lot quicker.
 
Support was cool...

I rented my first movie and it konked out on me too. I simply reported the problem via iTunes explaining what happened. They said sorry, gave me a credit and 3 free videos.

What is bothering me if the lack of content. NetFlix has 7,000 titles and Apple thinks a bunch of us early adopters are going to want to watch a bunch of old westerns. I'll be patient but why Apple can't get the studios to encode faster, I don't know.
 
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