Semi-legal video streaming app Popcorn Time is coming to iOS, with a new version that can be installed without owners needing to jailbreak their phones or tablets -- but with all the legal risks and ethical problems of actually using it still in place, too.

Although Popcorn Time already existed for Apple users, it required them to circumvent their devices' protections, then install a third party alternative to the App Store, both of which voided any warranties with the manufacturer. The 1.2 Beta iOS app avoids these steps entirely.


Despite not needing to jailbreak, you still won't find the app on the official iOS App Store listings -- there's no way the Apple gatekeepers would ever allow it onto the platform unless it went completely legit, as anime streaming service Crunchyroll did years ago. Instead, you'll need to download a separate installer, connect your iOS device to your computer, and follow some onscreen instructions. You'll have to find out details on how to do that elsewhere -- but since it doesn't require modifying your device's firmware, it shouldn't invalidate warranties.

As for actually watching copyrighted content with the app, however? That's obviously still illegal.

Popcorn Time is essentially a BitTorrent client, albeit one presented as a media streaming platform. Users search for films, the program finds the "best version possible" and begins playing it. While some argue it has legitimate uses for public domain films, it is an obvious thorn in Hollywood's side. The original developers pulled the client in March 2014, following pressure from the MPAA, but given it was an open source project, several other developers have stepped in to maintain and update it, or their own spinoff versions.


The new iOS app will also be compatible with Chromecast and Apple TV. Android and desktop apps have existed for a while, though the former also needs to be installed independently of the Google Play store.

Ironically, the custom installer which the Popcorn Time app will require is only compatible with Windows machines, though a Mac version is forthcoming. Designed as a way to break the closed ecosystem of Apple's walled garden, it could potentially allow any app to be installed on iOS devices without passing the Cupertino giant's notoriously rigid approvals process. Expect this to create a fresh series of update wars, as Apple will inevitably try to patch out the ability to use the installer, while rogue devs find new ways around those countermeasures.

We have reached out to the Federation Against Copyright Theft, which campaigns for intellectual property protections in the UK, for comment, and will update the story in due course.