Apple poaches top Sony TV executives to boost video content
LOS ANGELES: Apple Inc has hired two long-time Sony Pictures Television executives to expand the iPhone maker’s push into original television programming, plunging deeper into a field crowded by Hollywood studios and online streaming services.
Jamie Erlicht and Zack Van Amburg, responsible for hit shows such as “Breaking Bad,” “Better Call Saul” and “The Crown,” will join Apple in newly created positions to oversee all aspects of video programming, the technology company said in a statement.
“Jamie and Zack are two of the most talented TV executives in the world and have been instrumental in making this the golden age of television,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice-president of Internet Software and Services.
“There is much more to come,” Cue said of Apple’s video effort.
The new hires demonstrate a serious commitment by another deep-pocketed technology company to produce quality television shows. Erlicht and Van Amburg have served as senior Sony television executives since 2005.
But Apple did not elaborate on its strategy, leaving investors guessing how many shows it plans to distribute, how much it will spend and where the programming will be available.
The company is playing increasingly competitive in an field. Amazon.com Inc and Netflix Inc have invested billions of dollars in award-winning comedies and dramas featuring A-list Hollywood stars. And social media company Facebook Inc has signed deals with millennialfocused news and entertainment creators, including Vox and BuzzFeed, to make shows for its upcoming video service.
Apple began its move last week with reality programme “Planet of the Apps,” an unscripted show about developers competing for venture capital funding. The series is available only to subscribers to Apple Music, a $10-a-month streaming service.
VIEWER DATA: Apple has one huge advantage compared with other companies — 1 billion iPhones, iPads and other devices that run Apple’s mobile operating system and offer a broad distribution platform. The company has widely promoted “Planet of the Apps” across iTunes, the App Store, Apple’s website and elsewhere.
As tech companies push further into the content business, pressure mounts on traditional media outlets that do not have the same amount of data on viewers or the ability for content to be a loss leader, said Rich Greenfield, an analyst with BTIG.
“These companies do not need to make money off video because they can make money other ways,” Greenfield said. “And they are going to have tons of data on their viewers.”— Reuters