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Apple’s TV Show Woes

Posted on October 28, 2019 by admin Posted in Business Leave a comment

What it is: Apple’s original shows debuted and have gotten lukewarm reviews so far.

Apple TV is just a device that connects a TV screen to the Internet. Since anyone can make and sell similar devices, Apple had to finance original content like Netflix and Hulu.

The big problem with creating original content is that there’s no sure-fire formula for success. Right now, Apple is making the usual Hollywood mistake of pouring money into shows, completely forgetting the fact that pouring more money into a show is no guarantee that the show will be any good.

Hollywood wastes millions all the time with bad movies and TV shows that cost millions. The more Hollywood relies on A-list stars and high production costs, the less likely the project can make money.

Rather than dump millions into unproven shows, Apple should be focusing less on spending millions and more on creativity. The original “Twilight Zone” TV series operated on a limited budget, yet decades later it’s still considered a classic. That’s because the producers and writers had to find creative ways to tell interesting stories without relying on A-list stars and expensive special effects.

In comparison, Apple’s latest TV shows rely on expensive production settings (“See”, a series about a future where people are blind) or A-list stars (“The Morning Show” starring Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon). Unfortunately, nobody wants to watch a show with gorgeous setting and costumes that’s boring. Likewise, nobody wants to watch a show with A-list stars doing nothing interesting.

Pouring more money into a project is never the answer. Getting more creative is always the answer. Watch Apple waste millions and get little in return because eventually they’ll have to start cancelling one or more failing shows.

Failing shows are inevitable, and that means Apple will need to cancel shows eventually. Until Apple figures out that more money doesn’t equal success, Apple TV will likely flounder in search of a “Game of Thrones” hit that may never come for years to come.

Apple’s Services are the New iPhone

Posted on March 29, 2019 by admin Posted in Business, User Interface Leave a comment

What it is: Apple introduced services at its latest event that will provide income beyond the iPhone.

For the longest time, Apple was dependent on the Macintosh. The company tried to branch out into TV sets, game consoles, and personal digital assistants, but failed. Then Apple got another hit on their hands when they introduced the iPod.

The iPod carried the company forward and then iTunes came along to support the iPod and also sell music downloads. The combination of the iPod and iTunes made Apple dependent on that product instead of the Macintosh.

Then Apple introduced the iPhone, which effectively killed the iPod. You can still buy an iPod, but for the most part, it’s a dead product because most people have a music player in their smartphone. Now Apple is branching out from the iPhone to services.

Services provide a steady, ongoing revenue stream, but the key is that services need to solve a specific problem, just like technology needs to solve a specific problem.

People rapidly adopted the iPhone because it was a far better solution than previous smartphones from Nokia and Blackberry or Windows Mobile. People are still adopting the Macintosh as an easier alternative to Windows. So with so many services introduced, what problems do they solve?

Apple News+ is the only service currently available and basically gives you access to hundreds of magazines and newspapers. Basically the only problem it solves is that it gives people access to more magazines than subscribing to them individually, but that’s only if Apple News+ offers the specific magazines you want to read. Otherwise Apple News+ simply gives you access to magazines you don’t care about anyways.

For some people, Apple News+ will be useful but for many more, it will not. That doesn’t mean Apple News+ will flop, but that it’s not necessarily a major product like the iPod, iTunes, or the iPhone.

Apple Arcade is far more interesting because more people like games than like reading multiple magazines. By giving you access to multiple games at a fixed price (yet to be determined), you can enjoy games that you might not have considered buying otherwise.

This gives game developers an incentive to offer unique games beyond the usual first-person shoot ’em up game mechanics while also giving subscribers a safe way to explore other types of games.

Apple Arcade may be better than Apple News+, but games alone won’t make Apple a bundle of money.

Apple TV+ is the riskiest of all services because it doesn’t matter how many A-list actors or directors you throw on a project. That project can still fail. Apple TV+ will simply provide people with another source for original content, but whether it’s worth paying for or not will depend on the content and the cost.

Despite being the riskiest service, Apple TV+ does offer potentially large profits to rival Netflix or Hulu. Expect Hulu to whither away and Netflix to merge with someone eventually to stay alive.

Perhaps the service with the greatest potential is Apple Card, which eliminates fees and gives instant cash back rewards. Just eliminating fees alone is a big deal but offering clear account statements along with financial tracking features gives Apple Card a huge advantage over all existing credit cards.

Making the Apple Card more secure is just another advantage and offering people a titanium, laser-etched credit card with no number or signature further enhances security.

Since everyone needs a credit card, Apple Card is likely the most promising service of all. A large majority of iPhone users will get an Apple Card and Apple will make money off purchases. Such a steady stream of income will likely dwarf anything Apple News+, Apple TV+, or Apple Arcade can ever earn.

Apple Card is the big success of all of Apple’s services followed by Apple Arcade, Apple TV+, and Apple News+. Services are the future and with Apple Music already entrenched, services will simply allow Apple to grow beyond their hardware roots and thrive by customizing their future hardware to support their services.

Apple’s March 25 Event

Posted on March 12, 2019 by admin Posted in Business, Hardware Leave a comment

What it is: Apple announced a March 25 event that will likely focus on their news subscription service and TV shows.

Apple TV is just another way to stream content to a TV set. What could make Apple TV different from its numerous competitors is unique content.

Netflix and Hulu learned this long ago that they needed unique content to attract more subscribers because if they simply showed the same TV shows and movies as everyone else, there would be little reason for anyone to subscribe to their services. By offering unique content, Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu have turned themselves into a studio rivaling the big TV networks.

Now Apple is jumping into the game and they’ll likely introduce a new Apple TV model as well since the last Apple TV came out in September 2017. To go along with the new Apple TV, Apple will introduce their new streaming content.

The real key is whether Apple device owners will get this streaming content for free or whether they’ll need to pay a subscription fee. If Apple allows Apple product owners to watch their streaming content for free, they’ll guarantee a much larger number of viewers and help further cement the loyalty of Apple owners, making it harder for them to switch to rival products.

Right now, Apple TV is just a minor product that’s still trying to find its purpose much like HomePod. Adding unique content will help Apple TV, but whether it will be enough to differentiate Apple TV from rivals still remains to be seen.

Show business is a much harder business to predict than hardware or software sales, so Apple is venturing into unknown territory. Perhaps Apple should merge with Disney’s new streaming service to develop into a major powerhouse that few rivals could match.

Until then, expect Apple’s streaming content to be interesting but no game-changer. This March 25 event should be interesting for Apple TV users who want a new model, but for anyone else, this Apple event won’t hold much interest beyond streaming video content and news magazine subscriptions.

Apple TV Should Be Disney

Posted on September 27, 2018 by admin Posted in Business Leave a comment

What it is: Apple is only going to produce shows with family-friendly content.

Hulu, Netflix, and Amazon all knew that they had to create their own content so they created shows like “Game of Thrones” and “Orange is the New Black.” However, Apple wants to create their own content too, but they don’t want shows that might reflect negatively on the Apple name. That’s why Apple is focusing solely on family-friendly material.

Essentially, Apple wants to mimic Disney. There’s nothing wrong with that strategy. It’s just that Apple must constantly walk a fine line between creative freedom and family-friendly limitations while Netflix and Amazon along with HBO do not have any similar limitations. If Apple wants to focus on family-friendly content, they’re essentially duplicating the strategy of Disney.

So rather than duplicate the strategy of Disney, wouldn’t it make more sense to simply work together? Disney already owns Pixar and Steve Jobs helped create Pixar so Apple already has a good relationship with Disney. Rather than compete against Disney, it makes far more sense for Apple to work with Disney. Of course, partnerships can only work best when both sides can trust the other and that rarely happens in the long run. That means it’s probably in Apple’s best interests to simply use the Disney name.

Rumors have surfaced in the past about Apple buying Disney. That might not be such a bad idea considering that Disney owns so many properties from The Lion King and Mickey Mouse to everything Pixar has made to their theme parks. Apple could acquire Disney and simply keep it a separate name and company. Then Apple could just use Disney’s content.

The other alternative is for both Apple and Disney to promote their family-friendly content and compete against each other while also competing against Amazon and Netflix. With their lack of sex and violence, Apple and Disney simply can’t compete against some rival shows so it makes far more sense for the two companies to work together.

It’s unlikely Disney could ever buy Apple but it seems likely that Apple could buy Disney. The big question is if it’s worth the cost and headache of running a huge company separate from their computer business. Then again, Apple could simply own a minority stake in Disney to improve their business relationship.

Whatever the case, Apple and Disney are working together or competing against each other. Against Netflix and Amazon, it makes far more sense to work together than compete against each other. Watch Disney. They have valuable content that any company would love to feature, and it only makes sense to have a single family-friendly content creator rather than two.

To read about Apple’s focus on family-friendly content, click here.

Apple Creating Content with Sesame Workshop

Posted on June 20, 2018 by admin Posted in Business Leave a comment

What it is: Apple signed an agreement to create kids programs with Sesame Workshop.

Apple needs original content or else Apple TV will just be another commodity TV device. Original content means creating shows that can only be seen by subscribing to a particular service such as Netflix, Hulu, or now Apple. While Apple is unlikely to pursue any R-rated shows, they do seem interested in family entertainment. That’s why Apple has partnered with Sesame Workshop to create children’s programs.

Sesame Workshop is best known for creating “Sesame Street.” While Sesame Street won’t be exclusive to Apple, Sesame Workshop will create exclusive content separately for Apple. that includes live-action and animated shows. Most likely these shows will focus on educational content but this is just one more effort by Apple to create family-friendly content exclusively for Apple TV and other Apple products. If you want to see these new shows, you’ll have to subscribe to Apple’s new TV services.

Apple is likely focusing on the G and PG-rated market so families will trust Apple content in much the same way that families trust Disney’s content to be suitable for children. Of course, it doesn’t mater who Apple partners with if the content they create isn’t appealing to others, but that’s the chance Apple (and every other content provider like Netflix) must take. For every show that succeeds, a larger number will fail. That’s just the nature of original TV programming.

So look for original content coming from Apple and Sesame Workshop soon. Then hope that Apple’s original content actually proves compelling enough to convince people to sign up and pay a monthly fee. Apple will likely field a lot of misses and near disasters before finally discovering a blockbuster hit.

Apple Inks Deal with Oprah Winfrey

Posted on June 15, 2018 by admin Posted in Business, Marketing Leave a comment

What it is: Apple signed a deal with Oprah Winfrey to bring her content to Apple products.

Oprah Winfrey is a powerful woman who can create content in video and books. That’s why Apple recently signed a deal to access any future content Oprah creates or acquires the right to. That could mean future Oprah TV shows or movies could appear on Apple TV and future Oprah books could appear on Apple’s bookstore.

Apple has been aggressively pursuing original content for Apple TV because without it, Apple TV is just a commodity, offering the same thing that everyone else offers. Commodity markets are the least profitable markets. Just witness the android smartphone market where Samsung makes most of the money and all other Android device makers lose money. Making products that lose money is simply not sustainable in the long run.

Without original content, Apple TV offered little to attract customers. Now with more Hollywood deals including the latest with Oprah Winfrey, Apple can differentiate themselves from their rivals. Just as Netflix and Hulu have created original TV shows, so does Apple TV need original content that Oprah can provide. Any content created or endorsed by Oprah will immediately attract a huge following simply based on her name alone. Most likely any content endorsed by Oprah will be decent but the quality is far less important than Oprah’s name attached to it because Oprah’s name and following will insure that her content will be widely publicized and viewed.

Apple may be late to the original content market that Netflix and Amazon helped pioneer, but it has the money to stay in the market and outbid rivals for original content. This latest deal with Oprah will simply help Apple TV get started and compete against rivals. Now we just have to wait and see how good Oprah’s content really might be.