14 DAY TRIAL // Even though it might be working on new iPhone versions, wearables, and even smart glasses, Apple isn’t only about devices these days, with the company also investing in several new services that could see daylight in the coming years.
One of the first to get the green light could be a video subscription service that would compete with Netflix, with an analyst projecting that Apple would unveil it during the course of 2018.
Paolo Pescatore, vice president of multiplay and media at CCS Insight, told CNBC in an interview that Apple’s new video service would focus mostly on original content, which the company is well positioned to offer, though history has shown this isn’t as easy as it sounds.
Apple’s previous TV shows Planet of the Apps and Carpool Karaoke: The Series have been far from successful, but Apple seems to be looking into more similar content for a possible video subscription service. More recently, the company landed a new TV drama series from Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon.
“Everyone is jostling for position and everyone is jumping in on the area of video. When you look at Apple, it has a very strong hardware offering and their services business is on the march,” the analyst was quoted as saying. “The real battleground is in the area of original content, but original content would feature prominent and Apple would be very well placed to do that,” Pescatore continued.
Apple still interested in video streaming
While becoming a Netflix rival isn’t something that Apple can do overnight, it appears to be a target that the company is ready to embrace, especially because CEO Tim Cook has dropped several things that Cupertino isn’t willing to give up anytime soon.
“With our toe in the water, we are learning a lot about the original content business, and thinking about ways that we could play in that,” Tim Cook said earlier this year.
It goes without saying that no official information on such a project is available right now, but expect more details to land soon should Apple be interested in launching a Netflix rival.