Apple Upgrading iTunes Disney Movie Purchases to 4K HDR

Apple today began sending out emails to iTunes and Apple TV customers who have purchased a Disney movie in the past, letting them know that their titles have been upgraded to 4K HDR at no cost.

disneyappletv4k
Several MacRumors readers have received the emails, which come a week after Disney titles in the iTunes Store began showing up as 4K in the United States and Canada.

Many Disney titles are now showing up in the iTunes Store as 4K HDR, including Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars movies. 4K support for Disney movies has been a long awaited feature and it has been notably absent for years following the debut of 4K iTunes content in 2017.

Until recently, Disney movies purchased from the iTunes Store were only available in HD.

Tags: 4K, Disney, iTunes
Related Forum: Mac Apps

Popular Stories

Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock Light

iOS 19 Leak Reveals All-New Design

Friday January 17, 2025 2:42 pm PST by
iOS 19 is still around six months away from being announced, but a new leak has allegedly revealed a completely redesigned Camera app. Based on footage it obtained, YouTube channel Front Page Tech shared a video showing what the new Camera app will apparently look like, with the key change being translucent menus for camera controls. Overall, the design of these menus looks similar to...
2024 iPhone Boxes Feature

Apple Changes Trade-In Values for iPhones, iPads, Macs, and More

Thursday January 16, 2025 6:45 am PST by
Apple today adjusted estimated trade-in values for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models in the U.S., according to its website. Some values increased, while others decreased. The changes were not too significant, with most values rising or dropping by $5 to $50. We have outlined some examples below: Device New Value Old Value iPhone 15 Pro Max Up to $630 U ...
2024 App Store Awards

Apple Explains Why It Removed TikTok From the App Store in the U.S.

Sunday January 19, 2025 6:58 am PST by
Apple on late Saturday removed TikTok from the App Store in the U.S., and it has now explained why it was required to take this action. Last year, the U.S. passed a law that required Chinese company ByteDance to divest its ownership of TikTok due to potential national security risks, or else the platform would be banned. That law went into effect today, and companies like Apple and Google...
Generic iOS 18

Everything New in iOS 18.3 Beta 3

Thursday January 16, 2025 12:39 pm PST by
Apple provided the third beta of iOS 18.3 to developers today, and while the betas have so far been light on new features, the third beta makes some major changes to Notification Summaries and also tweaks a few other features. Notification Summary Changes Apple made multiple changes to Notification Summaries in response to complaints about inaccurate summaries of news headlines. For...
iOS 19 Roundup Feature

iOS 19 Rumored to Be Compatible With These iPhones

Saturday January 18, 2025 10:28 am PST by
iOS 19 will not drop support for any iPhone models, according to French website iPhoneSoft.fr. The report cited a source who said iOS 19 will be compatible with any iPhone that can run iOS 18, which would mean the following models: iPhone 16 iPhone 16 Plus iPhone 16 Pro iPhone 16 Pro Max iPhone 15 iPhone 15 Plus iPhone 15 Pro iPhone 15 Pro Max iPhone 14 iPhon...
iPad Pro vs iPhone 17 Air Feature

Here's How Thin the iPhone 17 Air Might Be

Friday January 17, 2025 3:38 pm PST by
For the last several months, we've been hearing rumors about a redesigned version of the iPhone 17 that Apple might call the iPhone 17 "Air," or something along those lines. It's going to replace the iPhone 17 Plus as Apple's fourth iPhone option, and it will be offered alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We know the iPhone 17 Air is going to be super slim, but...
airtag 4 pack blue

AirTag 2 Launching This Year With These 3 New Features

Sunday January 19, 2025 8:11 am PST by
After a four-year wait, a new AirTag is finally expected to launch in 2025. Below, we recap rumored upgrades for the accessory. A few months ago, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple was aiming to release the AirTag 2 around the middle of 2025. While he did not offer a more specific timeframe, that means the AirTag 2 could be announced by the end of June. The original AirTag was announced...
apple power beats pro 2

Powerbeats Pro 2 Coming Soon: Apple to Announce Them 'Imminently'

Sunday January 19, 2025 8:25 am PST by
In September, Apple said that it would be launching Powerbeats Pro 2 in 2025, and it appears the wireless earbuds are coming very soon. Powerbeats Pro 2 images found in iOS 18 code In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the Powerbeats Pro 2 are "due imminently." In addition to Apple filing the Powerbeats Pro 2 in regulatory databases last month, Gurman said Apple is...

Top Rated Comments

21CenturyDigitalBoy Avatar
56 months ago
Nice gesture. Anybody wish they would apply your rental fee to the subsequent purchase if you should choose to purchase after renting??
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
GermanSuplex Avatar
56 months ago
Seems to only apply to movies originally purchased in HD. SD copies have been upgraded to HD, but not 4K HDR. Hardly a complaint, though. 1080p looks better than the 480p versions I originally had.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
827538 Avatar
56 months ago
Hoping the same thing happens with the Lord of the Rings 4K remaster.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ryanmcv Avatar
56 months ago

Wait, what? Normally the strategy has been to sell you a DVD, then a Blu-ray, then a 4K version, and on and on. Now they are giving away free upgrades? I wonder if Vudu, Amazon, Google Play, etc. will offer a similar deal for Disney movies? And what about other studios?
If you purchase a movie in HD at iTunes, and the studio later upgrades that movie to 4K on iTunes, you are automatically given the upgraded 4K version for free -- regardless of studio. The only outlier up until now was Disney. Vudu and Google Play have done some free 4K upgrades, but not nearly as comprehensive as iTunes.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cmChimera Avatar
56 months ago
Sucks that some of my marvel movies came from Disney instead of iTunes. They’re not upgraded.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
julesme Avatar
56 months ago
Normally the strategy has been to sell you a DVD, then a Blu-ray, then a 4K version, and on and on. If they are giving away free upgrades, I wonder if Vudu, Amazon, Google Play, etc. will offer a similar deal for Disney movies.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)