This year is jam-packed with news of streaming service after streaming service releasing. Streaming used to be simple, with the Big 3 being Hulu, Netflix and Amazon. That’s it! All you needed.
However, this year is seeing the release of Disney+, Amazon’s new IMDBTV, AT&T TV, HBO Max, and more. But perhaps the one I’m most curious about is AppleTV+, Apple’s foray into streaming services, not counting Apple Music.
The Details of AppleTV+
A recent—as of time of writing, an hour-old—report by Bloomberg pinpoints AppleTV+ debuting at $9.99/mo, which is average for TV streaming services.
That’s not all though! The report also exposed Apple’s plan on spending big bucks on the service in the hopes of starting off strong. How much you may ask? Only 5 billion dollars.
One example of this spending is Apple’s original show The Morning Show, which reportedly has $300 million poured into it for the first two seasons. That show better be looking good, but it’s probably just because the show will have big stars on it.
Another example is Apple’s original See, which will be using around $15 million per episode according to the report. Woo! Apple is planning a long-future with their streaming service.
Finally, the report claims AppleTV+ will launch in November, the same month as Disney+. To be honest, I don’t know why Apple would launch close to Disney+, if the Bloomberg report is true. Apple is a big company, but it’s no Disney, which had a revenue of $59.6 billion last year.
The Success of Multiple Streaming Services
While I believe that Apple TV+ will have a long-lasting future, I don’t see it competing it with Netflix or Disney+. As far as what’s been released about the service, the main focus is on Disney’s original and third-party shows and movies, like The Lion King or The Avengers, and this will attract a sizable fanbase, no doubt. Netflix is Netflix, and while the company has hit a few bumps in the road in regard to pricing and content, I don’t see the service falling anytime soon.
Then there’s AppleTV+.While original content will no doubt intrigue a lot of early subscribers, keeping them is another thing. Apple may be spending a lot of money on the service, but will there be enough content to satisfy users for multiple months?
I’m not arguing that quality<quantity, but I am arguing that there’s a certain balance that a service must maintain in regard to quality and quantity to be successful. Netflix has a bunch of rewatchable, good shows on it that can satisfy most of it’s userbase, such as The Office. Disney+ will have tons of old—and new—original movies and shows on launch, with more promised in the future. What does AppleTV+ have?
There are big names collaborating with Apple with their service, but this only signifies short-term success. Now, Apple will reportedly release 3 episodes of an original show in one week with follow-ups uploaded weekly, which would work in retaining users. Then again, this may backfire and leave users upset at this model of business. Can’t please everyone though.
I truly hope that Apple succeeds. Apple Music is a good service, even though I personally don’t use it (Loyal to Spotify only), and Apple tries to focus on quality over quantity. I just hope their focus on quality of shows doesn’t affect the quantity of users that the service has in a few months.
One topic I haven’t touched on is AppleTV+ in China, due to me needing a whole article to dissect that topic. One key to success would be the service being allowed in areas like China, a country that requires VPNs for services like Netflix.Apple has a close, maybe too close, relationship with China, so I could see a—heavily restricted—version of AppleTV+ releasing in the country.
Overall, good luck to Apple and I can’t wait to check out The Morning Show!
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