Apple's New Slate of Original Programming May Launch as Early as March 2019

[MacRumors]

Apple is on track to outspend Facebook and YouTube on original content for the launch of its TV series and movie platform, which could debut as early as March next year.

Additional details of Apple's aggressive push into original programming were revealed on Monday in a New York Times article titled Apple Goes to Hollywood. Will Its Story Have a Happy Ending?

According to the report, Apple's strong brand name and its willingness to write big checks have quickly made it a top draw for show creators and stars. Furthermore, to underline its ambitions in the original content space, the company is said to be building a 128,000-square-foot headquarters for its new entertainment division in Culver City, California.

The location will likely be home to a 40-person team working on Apple Worldwide Video, whose portfolio of shows will include adult dramas, children's shows, and programming for Latin America and Europe. The planned rollout of the new slate of original content is expected to be sometime between March 2019 and summer 2019.

Last August it was reported Apple would spend $1 billion acquiring and producing original TV shows and Hollywood content over the next year. However, today's report suggests Apple will plough a lot more money into programming than that amount, having outbid Netflix in negotiations for some shows and exceeded Facebook's and YouTube's original content spend in recent months.

According to NYT, entertainment executives who met with Apple say the company is looking for TV shows that align with its "bright, optimistic" brand. That accords with previous rumors suggesting Apple wants to produce shows with broad appeal that are also inoffensive enough to be shown in an Apple Store. For example, Bryan Fuller, who was set to be the showrunner for Apple's upcoming "Amazing Stories" reboot, reportedly cut ties with the company after it requested family friendly content only. Today's report notes that Apple still hasn't found a replacement for Fuller.

Meanwhile, the delivery mechanism for the original content still remains unclear - the shows could be accessed through Apple's TV app or another standalone wrapper as part of a separate subscription streaming service.

Apple is known to have invested in at least 12 television shows so far. They include include a new animated TV series called "Central Park" an untitled morning show drama starring Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon (which is said to be still waiting on a script), an "Amazing Stories" reboot from Steven Spielberg, an untitled space drama from Battlestar Galactica creator Ronald D. Moore, a series written by "La La Land" creator Damien Chazelle, a Kristen Wiig comedy series, See, an epic world-building drama, Home, a docuseries focusing on incredible homes, "Little America," an anthology series from "The Big Sick" creators Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon, Swagger, a drama based on the early life and career of NBA star Kevin Durant, and a psychological thriller produced by M. Night Shyamalan.

Additional detail on all of Apple's TV projects can be found in the original content section of our Apple TV roundup.

Article Link: Apple's New Slate of Original Programming May Launch as Early as March 2019

 

[EvilEvil]

Apple playing catch up once again.

 

[62tele]

Where is the legendary focus of this company?
Where is the Jobs philosophy of sometimes you have to say no to ideas, features, ventures and products?

 

[Steve121178]

Are customers expected to rent or pay for yet another streaming service to be able to view this 'original content'?

Apple have lost their minds if they honestly think people are going to pay for another streaming service. Apple are far too late to the party. Again.

 

[Sethal]

It’s too bad that all that money is going towards content that sounds terrible, boring, or too kid friendly.

 

[Braderunner]

I think they meant to say "may launch as LATE as March 2019".

 

[69Mustang]

Apple is on track to outspend Facebook and YouTube on original content

Is this a big deal? I honestly don't know. I do know it would be a big deal if they were outspending Netflix or Amazon. But FB and YT... does anyone know if this is a big deal beyond name recognition?

 

[Amadeo]

Where is the legendary focus of this company?
Where is the Jobs philosophy of sometimes you have to say no to ideas, features, ventures and products?

I'm kind of in agreement with this. Although I'm a fanboy, I'm not a zealot like many other people on this forum.

I like the notch in the iPhone X. I really enjoy the lifestyle-focused ads they've been running. But this focus on original video programming is really odd. It feels like a lack of disciplined business growth. I suppose the strategy is that as their competitors' hardware reaches meaningful parity, they have to find other ways to lock people in. Thus, if they control the source of entertainment that people consume on said devices, they can better control the stream of revenue. But that would mean they'd have to make all of this content exclusive to Apple services/devices. Though, I'm not sure I would expect them to do anything otherwise.

I just find it hard to believe that folks would find their content so compelling as to choose Apple services/devices if they were at a crossroads between them and another option. All things being equal, I'm not sure that I would.

 

[69Mustang]

I think they meant to say "may launch as LATE as March 2019".

They meant "as early as". From the article:

The planned rollout of the new slate of original content is expected to be sometime between March 2019 and summer 2019.

 

[Rogifan]

Are customers expected to rent or pay for yet another streaming service to be able to view this 'original content'?

Apple have lost their minds if they honestly think people are going to pay for another streaming service. Apple are far too late to the party. Again.

This is exactly what people said when Apple Music was released. Cord cutting is in its infancy and nobody has won the streaming content war yet. In fact I doubt one company will ever be the winner. Anyway my guess is Apple will bundle this TV content with Apple Music into one subscription.

 

[snowboarder]

I guess it's OK to be the very last computer company to implement latest Intel processors.
But why do they have to be the last to invest into all the "hot" areas?
Why can't they just do something original?
What's hot today, will be very cold when Apple will finally decide to spend their money there.
All the latest news about Apple Music, self-driving car, Hollywood entertainment, all that
makes me sad...

 

[Steve121178]

This is exactly what people said when Apple Music was released. Cord cutting is in its infancy and nobody has won the streaming content war yet. In fact I doubt one company will ever be the winner. Anyway my guess is Apple will bundle this TV content with Apple Music into one subscription.

Apple may well bundle it as part of the Apple Music subscription, once they've jacked the prices up to compensate.

From a personal point of view, I already have Apple Music, Netflix & Amazon Prime Video on top of my cable TV subscription & sports packages, then the PPV events on top that I want to watch. There's no way I'll be paying any more for my entertainment.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

Personally, there is nothing of interest in Apple's rumored shows. But look how long it took other sites to acquire compelling original shows and then get buzz. I mean I ignored Amazon Prime shows for years. Now I'm totally addicted. Even if my Amazon orders slowed down I'd still keep it for the shows.

What we don't know yet is what old content will Apple also provide. A few original shows won't be enough. Heck, there aren't even enough Amazon prime shows. I'm constantly finding myself watching shows originally on networks. Apple has to be "original" here too, not just another Hulu or Netflix clone + music. And truth is, I have plenty of content right now between full time Prime and doing a monthly sub once other cable shows have aired and the full season is binge ready. With 10-12 shows in a season, easy to gulp that down in a month then cancel.

 

[Rogifan]

I'm kind of in agreement with this. Although I'm a fanboy, I'm not a zealot like many other people on this forum.

I like the notch in the iPhone X. I really enjoy the lifestyle-focused ads they've been running. But this focus on original video programming is really odd. It feels like a lack of disciplined business growth. I suppose the strategy is that as their competitors' hardware reaches meaningful parity, they have to find other ways to lock people in. Thus, if they control the source of entertainment that people consume on said devices, they can better control the stream of revenue. But that would mean they'd have to make all of this content exclusive to Apple services/devices. Though, I'm not sure I would expect them to do anything otherwise.

I just find it hard to believe that folks would find their content so compelling as to choose Apple services/devices if they were at a crossroads between them and another option. All things being equal, I'm not sure that I would.

I guess the thought is as the hardware markets Apple is in become very mature and people hang on to devices longer then it becomes about making more money off existing customers with services. And the added benefit being you have more predictable revenue streams that aren’t the boom and bust of the iPhone cycle. Also from Eddy Cue’s comments at SXSW it sure sounds like Apple admits they know nothing about original content and so they hired people who do and gave them a huge budget. And all this work is happening in LA far away from the hardware and software engineers in Cupertino. Honestly I wish Cook would take away all of Cue’s responsibilities outside of content and move him to LA. Then call his division Apple Entertainment or something and keep it mostly autonomous from the rest of Apple.

 

[thenewyorkgod]

TIL Facebook has original programming

 

[DakotaGuy]

Is this a big deal? I honestly don't know. I do know it would be a big deal if they were outspending Netflix or Amazon. But FB and YT... does anyone know if this is a big deal beyond name recognition?

They’ll never be able to compete with Netflix or Amazon in this area simply because those two are available pretty much everywhere on hundreds of devices. This content will be locked down to Apple devices only. The walled garden approach doesn’t work well in this instance.

 

[Glmnet1]

It’s too bad that all that money is going towards content that sounds terrible, boring, or too kid friendly.

This is from a guy in his mid-20s with no kids, I welcome their kid friendly policy with open arms. I'm tired that Netflix and others keep adding violence and sex just for the heck of it to everything they release.

 

[Rogifan]

Apple may well bundle it as part of the Apple Music subscription, once they've jacked the prices up to compensate.

From a personal point of view, I already have Apple Music, Netflix & Amazon Prime Video on top of my cable TV subscription & sports packages, then the PPV events on top that I want to watch. There's no way I'll be paying any more for my entertainment.

I have no plans to cut the cord and only have Netflix outside of DirecTV. My guess is Apple will do something on the price side to entice people to sign up. Like offer a bundle with Apple Music that’s cheaper than buying each service on its own. Or maybe release a series not behind a paywall to give people a taste of what the service has to offer.

 

[smaffei]

They’ll never be able to compete with Netflix or Amazon in this area simply because those two are available pretty much everywhere on hundreds of devices. This content will be locked down to Apple devices only. The walled garden approach doesn’t work well in this instance.

Agreed.

(By the way, I love your Clarus icon)

 

[0958400]

Where is the legendary focus of this company?
Where is the Jobs philosophy of sometimes you have to say no to ideas, features, ventures and products?

I agree. I remember that Apple had scholars working on Steve's life and the decision he had made to draw conclusions from it.
What did they do to them? Fire them? Did they give them a book about Steve Ballmer's "legacy"?
[doublepost=1522068097][/doublepost]

TIL Facebook has original programming

Oh they are already broadcasting their data...

 

[69Mustang]

They’ll never be able to compete with Netflix or Amazon in this area simply because those two are available pretty much everywhere on hundreds of devices. This content will be locked down to Apple devices only. The walled garden approach doesn’t work well in this instance.

I'm not asking whether or not they'll be able to compete for the eyeballs of the viewing public. I'm asking if their spend is a big deal since it's being compared to FB and YT as if their (FB/YT) spend is significant.

 

[Rogifan]

They’ll never be able to compete with Netflix or Amazon in this area simply because those two are available pretty much everywhere on hundreds of devices. This content will be locked down to Apple devices only. The walled garden approach doesn’t work well in this instance.

Apple Music is on Android. I know that’s probably because Beats was already there but I think content is one area where Apple would go cross-platform if necessary.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

They’ll never be able to compete with Netflix or Amazon in this area simply because those two are available pretty much everywhere on hundreds of devices. This content will be locked down to Apple devices only. The walled garden approach doesn’t work well in this instance.

True, BUT a few days ago MR posted an analyst report projecting major growth in subscription services while iPhone and other iDevices and Macs decreased. The report suggested Apple's planner for new growth will be in sustained subscriber fees. You are correct that can't happen if these assumptions only include Apple devices. That leads me to believe Apple will eventually open up all its services to Android and other set top boxes similar to how it opened iTunes and iTMS to Windows. The difference here, of course is the latter was done to sell hardware. Apple's next growth way though will be to essentially reduce it's dependence on hardware, possible starting the morphing of Apple from a CE company to a media company.

But as you say, unlike iTMS back in the early 2000s, Apple comes into this arena with a lot of mature competition and also competition with money available to defend themselves.

 

[stickyd8]

They should just buy Netflix. For every one good show of original programming coming from Amazon, Hulu, and Netflix, there are 50 that suck.

 

[DNichter]

I expect an TV service launched next year, similar to Music. Now, if they can bundle in iTunes movies, shows, and original content for lets say $40 a month, I think they have a good product.