Fandango updates its streaming service again

Thanks to Movies Anywhere and their Blu-Ray to digital offerings, I had a huge library of digital movies on Vudu. You may be wondering why I’m starting with this and why I’m talking about Vudu, in an article on Fandango. That’s because what Fandango at Home is currently was Vudu, and again, it’s in the process of being rebranded, but hopefully those with existing accounts and libraries won’t be affected much by this change. In a recent email update, Fandango made it clear that it is converting the current service name to a unique name, from Fandango at Home to Fandango. The email also explains that “nothing changes about your account” and that the service “will continue to bring you the entertainment you love.”

Apparently, all “movie libraries, purchases, rentals, watchlists, and preferences” will remain the same when you log in. This is good news, and judging by what happened to my library after the switch from Vudu, it’s an accurate statement. Everything is today as it was before the exchange.

Vudu was a great way to digitize your physical Blu-Ray and 4K movies while still collecting them. For a long time, you could buy Blu-Rays in a pack including the disc or physical version and a code for the digital version, redeemable on various services like Movies Anywhere or Vudu. In 2020, Fandango purchased Vudu from Walmart, discontinued its existing FandangoNOW streaming service, and consolidated them into one. For a while, it remained called Vudu, where you could buy, rent, and stream movies. In 2024, the name changed to Fandango at Home. Now we’re just at Fandango.

The most significant change is to the name, and the contextual references to that name also change. Everything that said “Fandango at Home” will now be simplified. This includes website and app handles, app icons, and places where “context is helpful,” such as when describing the service. Stream on Fandango will now be the nomenclature. The new name is already visible on the main website, where you can watch its free streaming movies, which now include a bunch of classic Turner films.

According to the team, nothing else changes. If you have an established account, like me, it should remain the same and accessible, including your digital library. All purchases, rentals, watchlists and saved preferences should also remain intact. Additionally, Fandango says FanClub members will still be able to use their monthly $10 promo codes and FanRewards customers will be able to continue to redeem the rewards they’ve earned for any eligible ticket or streaming purchase through Fandango’s normal channels.

We’ll also likely see more Fandango promotions in the future. For example, Amazon Prime members were able to watch Spider-Man: Brand New Day earlier, thanks to a joint promotion with Fandango.

When the initial changes were made, some of the older versions of the Vudu FandangoNOW apps were deprecated on older devices, meaning they stopped receiving updates and support instead of supporting more modern experiences. The service team warned that this could happen on some devices, even if the app icon remains visible. It maintains a list of supported devices on which you can watch your content libraries. While there’s no clear indication yet that support will end for more devices after the name and service change, it’s something to keep in mind.

One of the main disadvantages of digital media is that you don’t own anything like you would with a tangible product or record. Many EULAs propose that you simply have a license to use said products, and there are many cases where digital products stop working or are revoked from accounts altogether.

This is incredibly prescient in an age where digital is overtaking physical storefronts; Sony recently announced that it would stop producing physical discs in 2028 for PlayStation games. Film ownership has long struggled with this problem, and Sony’s announcement is one step closer to the complete death of physical media.