In the first episode of the program Apple TV + “The studio“, Martin Scorsese, the Oscar -winning director sells his scenario to the fictitious continental studios, to be informed later by a studio manager played by Seth Rogen that the project, about Jonestown, was killed.
Instead, the company accelerates a soulless cash flow: a Kool-Aid film.
“Make me just give me back my film and let me go and sell it to F-Apple, as I should have done in the first place,” explains a desperate scorse.
The line could practically be an advertisement on how Apple TV +, the Cupertino technology giant streaming service has positioned itself as a creative paradise for filmmakers trying to sell bold original ideas.
The service, which was introduced in 2019 with a Spishy event With Oprah Winfrey and Steven Spielberg, found success with comedy shows like “Ted Lasso” and 2022 Best image Winner of the “CODA” Academy Prize.
But the question that weighs on the company was, just As it is serious Was it about his Hollywood ambitions? Could this be the next great power player? Or would it just become another short time with a deep pocket? For years after joining the company, the leaders of Apple TV + Jamie Erlicht and Zack Van Amburg were hampered by rumors that their jobs were in danger.
In recent times, his efforts have been increasingly highlighted. He was on a series of critical successes with shows such as “Severance”, “The Studio” and “Your friends and neighbors”. Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a call with investors Thursday that Apple TV + “has become an essential destination” and has published viewers recorded during the quarter.
Some compared it to HBO – before Warner Bros. Discovery started to make cuts – Develop a reputation to be willing to pay large for stars and creatives on list A.
“It was brilliant to define its niche … and the quality of what it does is simply superb,” said Stephen Galloway, dean of Dodge College of Film and Media Arts from the University of Chapman. “The question is whether the niche is large enough to justify expenses?”
The Apple TV + subscriber base remains low compared to competitors, including Netflix. He does not have the deep and established libraries of Walt Disney Co. or Max by Warner Bros. Discovery, who helps keep customers to pay each month and not go to another service. Although he has good programs and films, say criticism, he does not have the volume and extent of his competitors.
And the quality approach on quantity has its skeptics. The director general of Wedbush Securities, Daniel Ives, estimates that Apple TV + has 57 million subscribers, which he described as “disappointing”. Wall Street hoped to see 100 million subscribers or more now, he said.
Apple has “built a mansion (and) they do not have enough furniture, and this is a problem from the point of view of content with Apple TV +,” said Ives.
In addition, the technological and commercial information site information said that Apple TV + loses $ 1 billion a year. The company's strategy has let some rivals scratch your head.
“I do not understand it beyond a marketing game, but they are really intelligent people,” said the Netflix Ted Sarandos CO-PDG in a March interview with Variety. “Maybe they see something we don't do.”
Apple refused to comment.
Observers have noted that it can take a long time for streaming services to become profitable. The peacock of Nbcuniversal always loses money, for example.
In recent years, subscription streaming services have been under pressure by investors to produce more profit. In an industry where there is A lot of competition And Netflix was declared the winnerThere is anxiety about the number of platforms that can survive by themselves.
But Apple thinks differently about entertainment compared to its more traditional studio rivals, say familiar people with the company.
Apple TV + is only part of the company's wider strategy to develop its subscription service activity under Eddy Cue, which includes Apple Music, iCloud Storage and Apple News, among other options.
The service category represented 25% of Apple's overall sales of $ 391 billion in its last financial year. The largest business manufacturer in the company remains iphonewhich represented 51% of Apple's total income in its last financial year.
During its last quarter, the services reached a revenue record of $ 26.6 billion, up 12% compared to a year ago, the company said.
Apple TV + is “a small piece of all the services you provide,” said Alejandro Rojas, vice-president of Applied Analytics with Parrot Analytics. “You want this to add to the overall experience of the brand, but without also crossing a massive gap in resources and investments.”
Apple TV + programming strategy has adopted an approach adapted to talents, tending to promote projects with stars of big name.
One of its first major bets was “The morning show“With Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon and Steve Carell. Drama”Your friends and neighbors“Stars Jon Hamm of” Mad Men “. His dramatic survival film in February “The Gorge” features Miles Teller and Anya Taylor-Joy.
One of the biggest Apple films outings will occur this summer with the Formula 1 film “F1” (with Brad Pitt), which will be released in theaters in June, including on Imax screens. Warner Bros. Manages the theatrical release of the big budget film, directed by Joseph Kosinski (“Top Gun: Maverick”).
Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore, hopes that “F1” will play as “Top Gun: Maverick” on a race track. Some of the previous films of Apple and starry filmmaker fought in theaters, notably “Fly Me to the Moon” and “Argy. “”
“It's a huge film for Apple,” said Dergarabedian. “I think they have chosen a perfect project to really amplify their sense of cinema and their relationships with their filmmakers.”
The way Apple treats talent has a personalized touch, said creatives who worked with the company.
The president of the studios of tomorrow, Becky Clements, said that she was “eternal” that Apple took a shot on “physical”, an original series with Rose Byrne about a housewoman in the 1980s who struggles with a food disorder and finds force thanks to aerobic.
“It is an original piece, which is often a difficult thing to do on the market,” said Clements.
Clements credited Apple to support the filmmakers and not to microchip the show, which has plunged into a difficult material.
Ben Silverman, an executive producer of the next Apple TV + “Stick” series (with Owen Wilson), said that the program's budget had made it possible to go to North Carolina for shooting, where eminent golf commentators Trevor Immelman and Jim Nantz were located during the PGA Tour.
“I think that many platforms are supporting their creators right now, but they may not have the bandwidth to go as deep as Apple can on individual projects because they simply do not do it,” said Silverman, president and co-PDG of propagat content based in Los Angeles.
Not all creatives were satisfied with Apple.
He threw observers for a loop when he made a short and limited theatrical release for the film of action comedy Brad Pitt and George Clooney from last year, “Wolfs”, instead of a more traditional large version.
Director Jon Watts said Deadline He fell from a suite because he was surprised by Apple's “last minute” and Apple ignored his request not to reveal that he was working on follow -up. Apple did not publicly approach the controversy.
Like other streamers, over time, Apple TV + has made changes to help generate more income, reduce costs and increase customers. Last month, Apple pricing of its streaming service temporarily at $ 2.99 per month. Its basic monthly costs are $ 9.99. Last year, Apple TV + concluded an agreement to sell subscriptions via Amazon.
In February, Apple TV + captured 30% of its registrations via Amazon Channels, said Brendan Brady, director of strategy for the Antenna research company. High level outings, including the new season “Severance” and “The Gorge”, have led registrations, he added.
“It is a combination of content that stimulates their acquisition, and also this opening of their distribution, attracting a new audience,” said Brady.
Apple's global activities are faced with macroeconomic challenges, such as the Trump administration trade war with China.
Government representatives have warned that prices on smartphones made in China are future – Which would harm the Apple iPhone because many are made in the country. The increase in costs for Apple's overall activities could possibly suppress other areas of the company, including Apple TV +, analysts said.
Some people who work with Apple said it was too early to judge Apple's success according to its enumerations of subscribers estimated so far, and they place tokens in the successful long -term company.
“It's about investing early and long -term,” said Silverman. “I am always a business spirit that wants to look early for these platforms and partnerships, hoping that I will be able to build a relationship by the sea.”
