No one who follows with a minimum frequency the news that revolves around the company of the bitten apple escapes that Apple continues its endeavor to produce original audiovisual content, as Netflix, HBO or Amazon do, although the distribution system or platform used for this, as well as the business model, still does not seem to be sufficiently defined.
If we needed more evidence of this new facet of Apple, we now know that over the past week, the Apple executive Eddy Cue, well aware of the company's content matters, met with other executives from two of Hollywood's biggest movie studios, Sony and Paramount, to be more exact. With what intentions?
Apple could be "preparing something big"
Eddy Cue, Apple's chief executive officer in charge of overseeing the company's services like iTunes and Apple Music, was in talks last week with Paramount Pictures and Sony Pictures, two of the largest film studios in Hollywood, without for the moment having transcended the specific content of those encounters.
According to this news, published According to the US newspaper The New York Post, Apple is seeking a "transformative acquisition" and "not just a deal to buy television shows." At the same time, an undisclosed source notes that Apple is "preparing something big".
Eddy Cue (left) and Tim Cook (right) | IMAGE: The New York Post
For the moment, Apple seems to be testing how it would work to produce its own content and distribute it through its own meanss. To do this, it has acquired the rights to carpool karaoke, a popular show that will restart with a season of sixteen half-hour episodes that will be distributed through Apple Music. The show trailer revealed that it will keep the format of celebrities singing while driving.
One hundred percent self-produced would be the docu-reality Planet of the Apps, which will be released next spring. It's about a reality show in which various application developers compete for the necessary capital while being mentored by Gary Vaynerchuk, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jessica Alba and will.i.am.
It is evident that during the last few years, Apple has shown a clear interest in producing its own content, and has made it known to the Hollywood industry. Last year, Apple is known to have met with heads of several film studios and producers with the idea of creating original television shows that would be offered exclusively on iTunes, although Eddy Cue later denied the greater, stating that Apple "is not in the business of trying to create TV shows', which is an obvious falsehood (Planet of the Apps). Instead, he said Apple is willing to offer producers suggestions and guidance when possible.
We are not in the business of trying to create television shows. If we see it as a complement to the things that we are doing in Apple Music or if we see that it is something innovative in our platform, we can help and guide them and make suggestions. But we are not trying to compete with Netflix or compete with Comcast.
The New York Post news maintains that Apple is not interested in an open content war with rivals like Netflix and Amazon, perhaps already with too much advantage and prestige. But the Wall Street Journal recently reported that Apple plans to "build a significant new business in original TV shows and movies," which it compared to HBO's "Westworld" and Netflix's "Stranger Things."
Tim Cook, Apple CEO, said in a conference call after reporting on the company's latest financial results that “In terms of original content, we have put our finger in the water making some original content for Apple Music, and that it will be developed throughout the year. We are learning from that and we are going to go from there. "
