When using the Universal Search app or the Apple TV+ search, I can only "search" for titles from the App Store, AppleTV, Music, and YouTube. I also have Amazon Prime, Hulu, Disney+, and Netflix, among others. Is there a way to select the Apps I want to search? Or does the Apple TV 4K randomly pick the installed Apps it intends to search?
[Re-Titled by Moderator]
Original Title: Appletv 4k A1842 Universal search
Apple TV 4K, tvOS 18
It’s entirely up to each developer to enable universal search integration on Apple TV.
They just want you to use and browse on their own app. It’s valuable user data.
Take it with a grain of salt, it’s just an opinion. Inclusion in Apple TV’s Universal Search typically requires full integration into Apple’s ecosystem including support for features like Up Next, system wide recommendations, and in app subscription offers through the Apple TV app itself. Many service providers choose to avoid dealing with this “Apple tax” and control. That way they don’t have to share subscription revenue and user data. In contrast, platforms like Google TV, Amazon TV, and Roku tend to be more open and less controlling, which makes them more appealing to third parties. In my opinion, that also makes them less curated.
That makes sense, but I can search across Netflix, etc., on my Roku, Amazon Fire TV, and Google TV devices. Why is this type of thing so hard, I wonder?
I have no such issues.
I search for a title, it displays and shows where it’s available, even if I don’t have a subscription or the app for the service isn’t installed.
How to customize "Universal Search" on Apple TV 4K?
