Apple TV+
Everything you need to know Apple’s new streaming service is finally here
The media streaming market has been growing steadily in recent years. With faster internet connections and ubiquitous wireless making it a feasible proposition in just about any situation, streaming has completely changed the way we consume media, and it’s only going to get bigger.
But is that really a good thing? The first wave of streaming services, with Netflix sitting proudly on top and services like Amazon Prime and Hulu chasing close behind, offered subscribers a huge amount of highly varied content for a nominal fee. Now, everyone wants a slice of the streaming market, from Disney to NBC to CBS and beyond – and Apple is no different, with its Apple TV+ service going live on 1 November 2019. From one big streaming service we’ve arrived at six or seven, with countless niche streamers sitting on the borders. Subscribing to them all (particularly with the quality and quantity of original series demanding everhigher subscription fees) will be unfeasible for all but the most cash- and time-flush. You will need to make a choice.
Playing its own game
Apple is naturally hoping that its own service will be high on that list. It has invested in the region of $6 billion (£4.67 billion) in the first wave of programming for Apple TV+, and that’s all original; thus far the company has followed its usual pattern of independence, and shown no interest in licensing existing series or movies for its service. Where other launches mean a fight for content – with Netflix losing the rights to shows like The Office and Disney’s movie catalogue, for example, to NBC’s Peacock and Disney+ respectively – Apple will play its own game.
The initial launch lineup (see p75) isn’t massive, consisting only of a few series and movies, and it seems Apple is confident in letting its programming line-up grow slowly, with new titles being added on a monthly basis rather than a weekly or daily schedule. That said, newly added series will launch with a planned three episodes, with further episodes released on a weekly basis, ensuring a level of freshness. If, that is, you’ve caught the bug of Apple’s shows. If you’re not worried about Oprah’s book club or your kids aren’t excited by the monsters of Helpsters, the lack of other options will likely be a turn-off until the catalogue grows.
Apple TV+’s library size isn’t, at least initially, the major driver. Strategically, it doesn’t have to be. Apple TV+ will quickly become the second largest streaming platform in terms of subscriber numbers, behind only Netflix, and Apple will have a solid year in which to build the service up. How? The power of free. Every iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Mac and Apple TV sold on or after 10 September includes a year’s subscription, gratis, which can be triggered up to three months after device activation. This will load the service up with eyes, and Family Sharing means that’s six potential viewers for every subscription.
Even if you’re not lucky enough to bag a free year, Apple is pricing
Apple TV+ very competitively, with a £4.99 monthly subscription sitting at a significantly cheaper price point than that of Netflix. The two services are poles apart in terms of their respective libraries, certainly, but if Apple is able to temper the pricing as its line-up grows, the end of that free year may make it a compelling subscription in its own right.
We also need to consider compatibility here, and this is where the crystal ball gets a little murky. Netflix, to keep harping on a single example, is compatible with just about everything. Its presence on games consoles like the Xbox 360 was what helped it build into a streaming giant in the first place, and you’ll now find Netflix apps on virtually every device – if you want to watch Netflix on something, you can. We don’t yet know what Apple TV+ will offer. Certainly it’ll be compatible with everything AirPlay 2, and the TV app (as well as AirPlay 2 support) has popped up on many modern smart
TVs in a show of unprecedented co-operation. But if Apple were to tie its content to its own protocols or refuse to make apps for platforms like Windows or Android, it would massively limit the service’s potential reach. There’s hope, though. Apple’s own website states that the company will be “bringing the Apple TV experience to popular smart TVs, streaming boxes, and streaming sticks” in autumn – that would presumably include devices like Google’s Chromecast (it’s already arrived on selected Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices) and Apple TV+ will be available through a web-based interface (tv.apple.com) too. A best-case scenario would be AirPlay 2 compatibility with all of that hardware, but that’s a fairly fanciful idea.
Subscribe or not?
Really, Apple is not about to cut off its nose to spite its face, and it’s not in this to get into any fights. In fact, it’s likely to cosy up to other streaming services in order to use them as a Trojan horse to push its own, with the recently launched all-in-one TV app being the portal to Apple TV+ and just about everything else. The industry is cautiously receptive. Disney CEO Bob Iger has suggested that the company’s Disney+ streaming service will be available through Apple TV devices (including the service-combining TV app) despite perceived competition between it and Apple TV+. Netflix participation in the TV app is not yet confirmed, though Prime Video is on board, along with a number of broadcast TV catch-up services.
It would be highly unlikely that Apple would refuse any competitor access, particularly as it enjoys a cut of subscriptions sold through its own storefronts. It’s also worth bearing in mind that Apple currently sells and rents a vast array of TV shows and movies through the iTunes Store, and will continue to do so through the TV app. This does give a big hint as to why the Apple TV+ lineup is entirely self-made.
So, should you subscribe to Apple TV+? We can’t answer that, particularly considering that, at the time of going to writing, the service has only just launched. But there’s no doubt that Apple is investing hard. If the service isn’t slick as ice we’ll eat our hats, and there’s clearly a high calibre of artistes involved across the board. We’ll certainly be watching, and have more to say as the service develops, but if you’d asked us to review Netflix when transitioned from DVD rentals to streaming we’d have had a very different opinion to the one we have today. We’d say give it a year.