It’s no secret that Vimeo has shied away from challenging YouTube in favor of serving as a business-friendly video platform, and now that’s affecting its living room apps. The company is ending support for its current TV apps on June 27th, including the versions for Android TV, Apple TV, Fire TV and Roku devices. They’ll no longer be available in app stores, and you won’t see any updates. If you want to watch a clip on the big screen, you’ll have to stream it from a mobile device using Apple AirPlay or Google Cast. We’ve asked Vimeo for comment.
The company is fairly clear about its reasoning. The focus on creatives and corporations means those TV apps aren’t a priority, and Vimeo shelves products that are “no longer consistent with [its] standards.” Vimeo isn’t about to maintain apps that don’t fit its strategy and will increasingly fall behind, in other words. Casting will provide a “better ongoing experience,” the firm claims.
Dear @Vimeo. I use your app to do everything. Does this mean I cannot watch any of the hundreds of videos I have saved in my “Watch Later” list to my TV? Come on… pic.twitter.com/QsXw7VrKta
— Ted Geoghegan (@tedgeoghegan) May 25, 2023
The catch, of course, is that you might still use Vimeo for watching your favorite videos. There won’t be an easy way to browse the “Watch Later” queue from the living room. While this won’t stop you from watching videos on a TV, this could make marathon viewing sessions more of a hassle. Like it or not, Vimeo is happy to steer you to your computer or phone for any extended streaming.
