Apple has launched a whole host of new services, intended to make more money from the people who have already bought its products.
In what was hailed as one of the most significant Apple events in years, the company did not reveal new products or software but instead a range of premium services. Together, they represent new ways to pay for news subscriptions, TV and games – as well as a new way to pay for anything, with a brand new titanium credit card.
The highlight of the new announcements was Apple TV+, a new streaming service built to compete with offerings like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. During the event, it invited many of the world's biggest stars and directors on stage to talk about the new shows, on which Apple is thought to have spent billions of dollars.
But it said it would bring a similar, paid-for and ad-free subscription service, for news and for games. All will allow people to pay a monthly fee for unlimited access to that content.
Apple tried to link the various announcements together through references to its corporate principles: stressing a focus on privacy, quality, and the ways that the various products are built to work with the company's hardware and software.
But the different announcements were also linked together in the fact that few details were announced about any of them. Apple only revealed the cost and release date of one of the new products, and gave little information about how many of them will work.
Apple is broadcasting creepy footage from inside its headquarters
Company appears to be teasing its new TV showsIt's a long-awaited attempt from the iPhone maker, several years after Netflix turned "binge watching" into a worldwide phenomenon.
The new video service is expected to have original TV shows and movies that reportedly cost Apple more than $1 billion — far less than Netflix and HBO spend every year.
Also expected is a subscription service consisting of news, entertainment and sports bundled from newspapers and magazines.
Apple is making the announcements at its Cupertino, California, headquarters during an event likely to be studded with Hollywood celebrities.
The iPhone has long been Apple's marquee product and main money maker, but sales are starting to decline. The company is pushing digital subscriptions as it searches for new growth.
Making must-have TV shows and movies that are watchable on any device has propelled Netflix into a force in both Silicon Valley and Hollywood.
But Apple remained focused on making on gadgets: iPhones, iPads, computers and its Apple TV streaming box for TVs. Apple co-founder Steve Jobs began toying with the idea of building a powerful TV business, but he couldn't pull it off before his death in 2011. It has taken his successor, CEO Tim Cook, nearly eight years to draw up the script that the company will now try to execute.
"Apple is very late to this game," eMarketer analyst Paul Verna said. "Netflix has become the gold standard in how to create and distribute content, using all the data they have about their viewers."
Netflix's prowess has attracted 139 million subscribers worldwide. But Apple will have several other deep-pocketed competitors fighting for consumers' dollars. Amazon has also become a formidable force in video streaming. Walt Disney Co. is launching its own service this year, armed with an imposing library that became more formidable with its purchase of 21st Century Fox's films and TV series. AT&T is debuting another streaming service built around HBO.
Apple has plenty of money to spend, though, with about $245 billion in cash and marketable securities. It must prove itself attractive to Hollywood even without a track record for supporting high-quality programming and then ensuring it gets widely seen.
As part of its efforts to make quick connections, Apple hired two longtime Sony television executives, Jamie Erlicht and Zack Van Amburg, in 2017. They have reportedly signed up stars such as Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg and Jennifer Aniston.
And here's another set of more detailed stuff from Reuters:
Apple Inc is expected to finally lift the curtain on Monday on a secretive, years-long effort to build a television and movie offering designed to compete with big media companies and boost digital services revenue as iPhone sales taper.
"It's show time" is how the iPhone maker billed the affair slated for the Steve Jobs Theater at its Cupertino, California, headquarters. Analysts believe it will be the technology company's first splashy launch event that will not feature new gadgets or hardware.
Hollywood celebrities are likely to trek to Apple's Cupertino home to greet the debut of a revamped Apple TV digital storefront. Applehas commissioned programming from A-list names such as Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, Oprah Winfrey and Steven Spielberg.
The Apple original shows are expected to be offered alongside the option to subscribe to content from Viacom Inc and Lions Gate Entertainment Corp's Starz, among others, sources have told Reuters.
Apple will join a crowded field where rivals such as Amazon.com's Prime Video and Netflix Inc have spent heavily to capture viewer attention and dollars with award-winning series and films.
The big tech war for viewers ignited a consolidation wave among traditional media companies preparing to join the fray. Walt Disney Co, which bought 21st Century Fox, and AT&T Inc, which purchased Time Warner Inc, plan to launch or test new streaming video services this year.
Apple's jump into original entertainment signals a fundamental shift in its business. Sales of hardware money-makers the iPhone, iPad and Mac were either stagnant or flat in its most recent fiscal year. Without another category-defining new gadget announced to the public, Apple is expected to rely on selling subscriptions and services like video, music and hardware insurance.
Revenue from its "services" segment - which includes the App Store, iCloud and content businesses such as Apple Music - grew 24 percent to $37.1 billion in fiscal 2018.
The services segment accounted for only about 14 percent of Apple's overall $265.6 billion in revenue, but investors have pinned their hopes for growth on the segment.
Apple's TV push has been cloaked in mystery. Even producers of Apple's shows are unsure about many of the details about when and how audiences will be able to see their work.
On Monday, Apple also is expected to unveil an Apple News subscription option featuring content from major publishers and a new credit card with Goldman Sachs to bolster Apple Pay.
NOT TAKING ON NETFLIX
While Apple plans to spend $2 billion on original shows this year and has hired Hollywood veterans to oversee them, it is unlikely to take on Netflix or Amazon directly by including libraries of older shows. Instead, its model is expected to more closely resemble the App Store, offering paid subscriptions to other media companies' programming and keeping a cut of sales.
Ahead of the launch, Apple negotiated deals that would let Apple bundle and sell networks at a discount, replicating a business model from the cable TV industry, one source familiar with the matter said.
Apple's goal, other sources have told Reuters, is to bring together television shows in one place to make it easier to find, buy and watch them. Apple has worked to make it easier to watch the shows on traditional television from manufacturers such as Sony Corp, VIZIO Inc, LG Electronics Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.
Apple's pitch to Hollywood is that it has the potential to reach hundreds of millions of viewers. The company said in January there were 1.4 billion active Apple devices, 900 million of which are iPhones. It has positioned that as leverage against Netflix's 139 million global customers and the 100 million subscribers to Amazon's Prime shipping program, which includes the video service.
But the Silicon Valley company has a history of making quick progress when coming from behind: It launched its Apple Music streaming service years after rival Spotify Technology SA but has garnered 50 million listeners, nearly half of Spotify's 96 million premium subscribers. And Apple in January said its Apple News service had 85 million active users after being released less than four years ago.
Apple is about to announce something that could be far more important than any iPhone
The Independent'Services' is the hot new word around Apple – and represents a major part of its plan for the future
Apple will enter the video subscription market later on Monday when the technology giant is expected to announce plans for a new TV and film service.
Here is a closer look at the rivals Apple will be up against:
- Netflix
The most high-profile of the rival services, Netflix has more than 130 million subscribers globally and features a mixture of award-winning original content and other TV and film releases.
Users can watch content on-demand on a variety of devices, from laptops to smartphones and video game consoles.
It is also possible to download shows to watch offline when users do not have an internet connection.
Netflix also offers tiered monthly subscription pricing, with prices ranging from £5.99 for the basic service, to its £9.99 premium service which includes access to compatible content in Ultra HD resolution and the ability to watch on up to 4 different screens at the same time.
- Amazon Prime Video
Available as part of Amazon's wider Prime rewards programme which offers faster delivery times on items bought from Amazon's e-commerce business, Prime Video is a mix of popular third-party content and its open original programming.
The service is available across mobile devices as well as Amazon's line of Fire TV plug-in boxes and sticks and PCs.
It also includes Amazon's X-Ray feature, which enables users to identify actors and songs while watching a programme and find out more about them.
Subscribers can choose to pay £7.99 a month for the full Prime service which includes faster parcel delivery and access to Prime Music, or pay £5.99 for just Prime Video.
In the US, Prime Video also includes a Channels feature which enables users to sign up to other third-party services, such as those offered by networks HBO and Showtime.
- BritBox
Expected to launch later this year, BritBox is a joint venture between the BBC and ITV into the TV streaming market.
Said to feature the "biggest collection of British content available on any streaming service", it is expected to include high-profile programming from both the BBC and ITV, and could also include content from Channel 4 and Channel 5.
It is being touted as a "long-term home" for many shows after they are no longer available on catch-up services such as the BBC iPlayer and ITV Hub.
Pricing and full launch date are still to be confirmed.
- Disney+
Another service still to be launched, Disney+ is expected to go live in the United States later this year with a collection of Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars and National Geographic-based content.
As well as classic films and TV episodes, the platform is also expected to host a wide range of original programming that will appear first on Disney+.
Further details, including pricing and UK release date, are still to be released.
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