Apple TV 3 Owners Report Issues Viewing YouTube Content

Google appears to have handicapped its YouTube support for the third-generation Apple TV, based on hundreds of user complaints on Apple’s support forums and in YouTube’s Help Center.

youtube apple tv
Multiple users are reporting problems accessing certain YouTube content such as music videos. When attempting to watch the content, viewers are being met with the message "An error occurred loading this content. Try again later."

One Reddit user who contacted Apple customer support reports that Apple claims the issue is on Google’s end, following recent changes it made to the YouTube platform. However, Google has yet to address or acknowledge the problem, despite numerous reports being filed and submitted over the course of more than two weeks.

Have you had trouble viewing YouTube content on a third-gen ‌Apple TV‌? Let us know in the comments below.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Tag: YouTube
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)

Popular Stories

Apple iPhone 16e Feature

Apple Announces iPhone 16e With A18 Chip and Apple Intelligence, Pricing Starts at $599

Wednesday February 19, 2025 8:02 am PST by
Apple today introduced the iPhone 16e, its newest entry-level smartphone. The device succeeds the third-generation iPhone SE, which has now been discontinued. The iPhone 16e features a larger 6.1-inch OLED display, up from a 4.7-inch LCD on the iPhone SE. The display has a notch for Face ID, and this means that Apple no longer sells any iPhones with a Touch ID fingerprint button, marking the ...
iphone 17 pro asherdipps

iPhone 17 Pro Models Rumored to Feature Aluminum Frame Instead of Titanium Frame

Tuesday February 18, 2025 12:02 pm PST by
Over the years, Apple has switched from an aluminum frame to a stainless steel frame to a titanium frame for its highest-end iPhones. And now, it has been rumored that Apple will go back to using aluminum for three out of four iPhone 17 models. In an investor note with research firm GF Securities, obtained by MacRumors this week, Apple supply chain analyst Jeff Pu said the iPhone 17, iPhone...
apple launch feb 2025 alt

Here Are the New Apple Products We're Still Expecting This Spring

Thursday February 20, 2025 5:06 am PST by
Now that Apple has announced its new more affordable iPhone 16e, our thoughts turn to what else we are expecting from the company this spring. There are three product categories that we are definitely expecting to get upgraded before spring has ended. Keep reading to learn what they are. If we're lucky, Apple might make a surprise announcement about a completely new product category. M4...
Generic iOS 18

Here's When Apple Will Release iOS 18.4

Wednesday February 19, 2025 11:38 am PST by
Following the launch of the iPhone 16e, Apple updated its iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia pages to give a narrower timeline on when the next updates are set to launch. All three pages now state that new Apple Intelligence features and languages will launch in early April, an update from the more broader April timeframe that Apple provided before. The next major point updates will be iOS ...
apple launch feb 2025

Tim Cook Teases an 'Apple Launch' Next Wednesday

Thursday February 13, 2025 8:07 am PST by
In a social media post today, Apple CEO Tim Cook teased an upcoming "launch" of some kind scheduled for Wednesday, February 19. "Get ready to meet the newest member of the family," he said, with an #AppleLaunch hashtag. The post includes a short video with an animated Apple logo inside a circle. Cook did not provide an exact time for the launch, or share any other specific details, so...
apple c1

Apple Unveils 'C1' as First Custom Cellular Modem

Wednesday February 19, 2025 8:08 am PST by
Apple today announced its first custom cellular modem with the name "C1," debuting in the all-new iPhone 16e. The new modem contributes to the iPhone 16e's power efficiency, giving it the longest battery life of any iPhone with a 6.1-inch display, such as the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16. Expanding the benefits of Apple silicon, C1 is the first modem designed by Apple and the most...
Apple Northbrook

Apple Store Permanently Closing at Struggling Mall in Chicago Area

Tuesday February 18, 2025 8:46 pm PST by
Apple is permanently closing its retail store at the Northbrook Court shopping mall in the Chicago area. The company confirmed the upcoming closure today in a statement, but it has yet to provide a closing date for the location. Apple Northbrook opened in 2005, and the store moved to a larger space in the mall in 2017. Apple confirmed that affected employees will continue to work for the...

Top Rated Comments

AdamFootUK Avatar
64 months ago
I’m also having issues as an Apple TV 4 user, but only because the app is so badly designed for Apple TV ?
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
thequietaussie Avatar
64 months ago

I’m also having issues as an Apple TV 4 user, but only because the app is so badly designed [S]for Apple TV[/S] ?
;)
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CarlJ Avatar
64 months ago

Idk, I don't see people having as many UI issues on other devices as on 4th gen Apple TVs. I literally have to stop using the Siri Remote before I have an anxiety attack and use my iPhone as a remote because of how sensitive it is and a pain in the ass to use the app with the Siri Remote.
The YouTube app is a cross-platform mess that only begrudgingly supports the AppleTV. One of the problems is they don't really support the trackpad, it's built for a D-pad. If you stop trying to swipe, and instead just lightly tap on the top, bottom, or sides of the trackpad, it works a lot better. (Also, there's a setting in the settings app for how sensitive the Siri trackpad is.)

I've learned to operate within its limitations. The two that still frustrate me no end are:

One, every time you unpause, YouTube insists on covering the bottom half of the screen with largely unnecessary controls and "you might also like" advertisements for other videos (dammit YouTube, I unpaused this video, that means I want to watch this video - stop using half the screen to tell me about other videos), and you can't dismiss this from the trackpad, only using the menu button (or waiting), and if you hit the menu button to dismiss it just as it decides to auto-dismiss, then the menu button performs its other primary purpose and takes you out of the video. So infuriating!

And, two, when their lower-half travesty of videos and controls is on the screen, every time you move from the timeline down to the other controls, if the video is paused, IT UNPAUSES THE VIDEO FOR YOU! Dammit YouTube! I paused it to and brought up the bottom, you know, have it stay in the same place while I went to add it to a list or something - why are you starting the video back up? It's precisely what I don't want at the moment. It's like it's trying to trick you into hitting the menu button to dismiss the mess on the bottom half of the screen, and maybe jump out of the video entirely.

Also, serious points off for using the row under the video title to tell me that it's "Recommended for you". With upwards of 17 trillion videos on YouTube now, every video listed on my screen is going to be somehow recommended for me - I also don't care how many times it's been viewed. Instead, tell me the date the video was posted. Lots of times there'll be 3-4 videos from the same source, and I want to watch them in order. Armed with the date I can do that. If all 4 just say "Recommended for you", then I have to guess.

The iPad YouTube app handles the video controls at the bottom, and the date/info under the the thumbnail issues much better. I wish we could have that on the Apple TV.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
allenvanhellen Avatar
64 months ago
OK, let’s just keep buying new streaming boxes every 5 years and throwing the old ones in the trash. Great.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iParis Avatar
64 months ago

;)
Idk, I don't see people having as many UI issues on other devices as on 4th gen Apple TVs. I literally have to stop using the Siri Remote before I have an anxiety attack and use my iPhone as a remote because of how sensitive it is and a pain in the ass to use the app with the Siri Remote.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Justin Cymbal Avatar
64 months ago
Makes sense that the third gen Apple TV is slowly losing support... After all it came out in 2012

I still have a few 3rd gen ATVs lying around - mostly just use them when I travel incase I forget it in the hotel
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)