United Apple TV+ Partnership Adds Full Seasons

Published on Aug 12, 2025, 3:11 pm CDT

5 min read

United and Apple TV+ launched a collaboration that brings entire first seasons of Apple Originals to United's inflight entertainment. United says the catalog is free on more than 130,000 seatback screens and in the United app, with additional titles added monthly. The lineup begins with Severance, Shrinking, Ted Lasso, Slow Horses, and Silo, with The Morning Show and Bad Sisters slated to join in September. United frames the move as part of a broader push to expand its screen count and improve the quality of seatback viewing across the fleet.

Key Points

Why it matters: Whole-season Apple TV+ series elevate inflight entertainment beyond clips and single episodes.
Travel impact: Start on a seatback screen, then resume later in the United app between flights.
What's next: United targets more than 300,000 seatback screens as deliveries and retrofits progress.
Monthly updates will rotate in additional seasons, films, and documentaries.
New interiors introduce larger 4K OLED seatback screens with Bluetooth in premium cabins.

Snapshot

United says Apple TV+ will appear as a featured channel with full first seasons of flagship shows. Access is free inflight on seatback screens and within the United app, and the airline highlights viewing continuity across trips. Start an episode on a short hop, then pick up where you left off on a later flight. The announcement lands as United expands its embedded screen footprint and introduces larger, brighter 4K OLED displays in premium cabins, with upgraded screens elsewhere. Apple reports 81 Emmy nominations this year, which adds prestige and breadth to the programming entering United's system. The airline says new seasons, films, and documentaries will be added monthly.

Background

United has leaned into embedded seatback entertainment, citing reliability, battery independence, and ease of use for travelers. The airline became the first U.S. carrier to support Live Activities for iPhone, which surfaces real-time flight updates on the Lock Screen and Dynamic Island. It later integrated Apple's Share Item Location so travelers who use AirTag or another Find My accessory can securely share a device location with customer service to help recover delayed bags. Hardware investments are ongoing, including 27 inch, 4K OLED seatback screens with Bluetooth pairing in premium cabins on new wide bodies. For a look at how competitors are expanding catalogs, see Anime on Delta flights, powered by Crunchyroll.

Latest Developments

United Apple TV+ Partnership Launches Inflight Channel

United announced that first seasons of Severance, Shrinking, Ted Lasso, Slow Horses, and Silo are now available for free on more than 130,000 seatback screens and in the United app. The Morning Show and Bad Sisters will be added in September. United positions the Apple TV+ channel as a monthly refreshed hub that will also include a broader mix of television episodes, documentaries, and films. Viewing progress can carry between flights when using the app and seatback system, which lowers friction for travelers on multi-segment trips. United ties the programming push to a long-term plan to surpass 300,000 screens as new aircraft arrive and retrofits scale.

4K OLED Seatback Screens Expand

United unveiled a new wide-body interior that introduces 27 inch, 4K OLED seatback screens with Bluetooth in premium cabins, plus larger, higher-resolution displays elsewhere. The airline describes these screens as the largest among U.S. carriers in comparable cabins. The interior program also layers in wireless charging and refreshed seating, which should pair well with longer-form series now featured on the Apple TV+ channel. United says the entertainment footprint will grow as retrofits accelerate and additional aircraft enter service.

Analysis

The United Apple TV+ partnership is notable because it prioritizes depth over fragments. Whole seasons reduce the cognitive cost of starting a show mid-trip, which is a real barrier when seat time is limited or broken by connections. Continuity between the app and seatback system matters, because it lets travelers carry progress across aircraft types without relying on gate-to-gate Wi-Fi. United's emphasis on embedded screens remains a strategic bet on reliability and accessibility compared with bring-your-own-device models that depend on network stability. Larger 4K OLED displays and Bluetooth pairing move the experience closer to at-home viewing, which can influence carrier choice on transcontinental and international routes. The variables to watch are catalog pacing, retrofit speed, and how quickly the Apple TV+ hub reaches narrow-body fleets. If United maintains monthly updates and scales hardware on schedule, the United Apple TV+ partnership should become a durable differentiator in inflight entertainment.

Final Thoughts

United is pairing a larger screen footprint with premium, full-season content that reduces friction and feels modern. The Apple TV+ channel, monthly refresh cadence, and cross-flight continuity point to an inflight entertainment strategy built for longer trips and frequent connections. Execution now shifts to retrofit tempo and catalog breadth, the levers that will determine whether the uplift translates to satisfaction and loyalty. For travelers, the result is more choice and less hassle at 35,000 feet, which is the promise of the United Apple TV+ partnership.