The world of media streaming is weird, full of oddities and inexplicabilities. Content is region locked due to rights issues, movies and TV shows appear and disappear at will because of licensing deals.
Few things stay still.
But the absolute worst part are the official clients that these streaming service providers make available for subscribers. Many lack basic features, and most could use a design rethink in terms of UI and usability.
The worst offenders, however, are apps that are missing on popular platforms. No worse feeling than subscribing to a streaming service only to find out that you have to run through hoops to get the best experience or utmost quality on your platform of choice.
Windows users have known this feeling for a while now.
Take Disney+ as an example.
The popular streaming service is still limited to 720p streaming on Windows, and better tiers are locked for subscribers on Microsoft’s operating system. Resolutions like 1080p and 4K are restricted for Windows users on Disney+ for security reasons.
Which is basically another way to say that DRM has not been implemented on Windows due to fears that people can use screen recording programs to record content in browsers.
This not only limits the audio and visual quality that they experience, but also means that Windows users that have built small form factor PCs for their home theaters miss out on the best possible experience for their entertainment.
Luckily, the long overdue refresh of the Microsoft Store brings with it some good news when it comes to official clients, including the abovementioned Disney+ platform.
And that’s because Microsoft has confirmed that an official Disney+ app is in development for the Windows operating system and will be available shortly.
What we have no confirmation for is whether this is a native official client for Windows — like Netflix that does offer 4K streaming support on the platform — or simply a repurposed Android app that is tailored for big screen experiences on the OS.
Chances are, that with a renewed focus on media, with multiple streaming services, shows and movies finding a home on the Microsoft Store, it is the former.
We’ll find out in due time.
