Apple’s plan to change the future of television is starting to look a bit clearer now that a new report claims the company is planning to take a page out of Amazon’s playbook.
Apple may have $268.9 billion in cash on hand, but it doesn’t get everything it wants. According to a new report, Apple lost out to HBO on acquiring a new original TV series written by J.J. Abrams, his first since 2008’s Fringe.
Called Demimonde the series is about a family whose mom winds up in a coma following a car crash, after which her daughter and husband are transported to another world to fight a monstrous, oppressive force. HBO is describing the series as, “an epic and intimate sci-fi fantasy drama.”
Apple looks set to open a new office in Culver City, California, after HBO backed out of plans to take the lease. The new building, which features 128,000 square feet of space, is projected to open in late 2019 and could become the home of Apple’s original video efforts.
Apple acquired Beats a few years after co-founder Steve Jobs’ death, but a rare photo has surfaced showing the former Apple CEO rocking a pair of ugly Beats headphones.
Jobs had some familiarity with the Beats brand before Apple eventually bought it. As part of the new HBO documentary, “The Defiant Ones”, Beats co-founder Jimmy Iovine says he insisted all his friends test out the new headphones his company was developing. One of those friends was Steve Jobs, who was photographed wearing the headphones in a rarely seen picture:
Check out Jobs rocking the ugly headphones:
The battle for video streaming supremacy is already turning allies into rivals.
After making some of its best shows available on Amazon Prime since 2014, HBO revealed today that it does not plan to renew its licensing pact with Amazon once it expires next year.
Apple reportedly has a new plan for selling TV, with the goal of selling customers a premium TV bundle, grouping together HBO, Showtime, and Starz.
Although Apple TV already offers these channels on their own, bundling them together as part of a package would take Apple one step closer to its goal of being a serious TV player — and making Apple TV a bit more appealing in the process.
Cord cutters just got another option for getting their TV fix over the internet.
Google-owned YouTube revealed today that is launching a new streaming TV service that will offer customers a bundle of channels from broadcast and cable networks for $35. But it might not come with all the channels you want.
The biggest hole in DirecTV Now’s lineup may finally get filled by CBS, but it’s going to take awhile.
CBS CEO Les Moonves said today he’s confident his company will be able to make a deal with AT&T’s DirecTV Now service. However, CBS may delay and wait for a better deal.
AT&T is giving cord-cutters a new option to stream TV with its new DirecTV Now app.
The new service launched on iOS and Apple TV today, allowing subscribers to stream bundles of live channels and thousands of movies on demand for a fraction of the price of your cable bill.
Apple will reportedly slash its 30 percent App Store fee in half for video services that support its upcoming TV app, according to a new report. The incentive should persuade more providers to support the app, which is set to be released next month.
Cupertino’s slow flirtation with Hollywood nearly landed Apple an exclusive iTunes movie deal with comedian Chris Rock, according to a new report.
Apple has shown interest in producing original video content of its own. The company bought the rights to James Cordon’s Carpool Karaoke TV show, and it appears Apple has some tepid interest in making the type of movies you’d find on Netflix.
iPhone sales in China might tank once Trump takes over the Oval Office, but late-night TV host Bill Maher has a brilliant product idea that could be Apple’s next big hit.
“It’s now liberals’ turn to become doomsday prepping gun nuts, they just need survival products tailored to our lifestyle,” he said during the most recent Real Time With Bill Maher. To get liberals to love guns, Maher suggests Apple make one called the “Apple iDefender.”
Watch the funny segment below:
Apple is making it a lot easier for Apple TV owners to find their favorite video content, with an all-new app called simply “TV” that puts everything in one place.
The new TV app debuted at an Apple event this morning that showcased how viewers will be able find new shows to watch as well as tune into live TV.
AT&T is getting into the television streaming game.
The company revealed today that it is launching a new streaming service called DirecTV Now in November and not only will it come with over 100 channels. It also won’t count against your mobile data.
AT&T isn’t the only company interested in acquiring HBO’s parent company Time Warner Inc.
Apple executives approached the company about a potential merger a few months ago, according to a new report that claims the iPhone-maker is keeping a close eye on Time Warner’s advanced acquisition talks with AT&T.
Watching television is still a dreadful experience, according to Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior VP of internet software and services.
The Apple exec sat down for a joint interview with HBO CEO Richard Plepler at Vanity Fair’s New Establishment Summit in San Francisco today. The two media titans discussed the rapidly changing landscape of television, but Cue told the audience that more changes are needed to make the experience better.
HBO talk show host Bill Maher railed on Apple for not thinking different with the iPhone 7 on his latest show. He suggested that if Apple really wanted to do some thing truly innovative, it should try not releasing a new iPhone ever year.
The comedian’s hilarious segment took aim at everyone from the shareholder that demand greatness every quarter, to the early adopters enabling the monster.
Watch Bill go in on Apple:
Getting your weekly fix of new TV shows from Hulu is about to get more expensive, as the streaming video service plans to phase out its free tier that was supported with ad revenue.
After letting users watch thousands of episodes for free since it launched nine years ago, Hulu has partnered with Yahoo to offer up its content for a new service called Yahoo View, an ad-supported service that will give viewers the ability to watch the five most recent episodes of shows from ABC, NBC and Fox.
The tough negotiating tactics made famous by former Apple CEO Steve Jobs are starting to hurt the company in the era of Tim Cook, according to a new report that reveals the company’s planned TV service failed to launch as a result.
Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior VP of internet software and services, supposedly angered TV industry execs more than any other Apple employee during the negotiations with companies such as Disney and Time Warner.
Apple’s big keynote for WWDC is just a few days away, but if you want some hints about what the company will unveil, just ask Siri.
Apple’s digital assistant won’t spill the beans on iOS 10 or macOS, however asking her questions like “What will happen at WWDC?” currently cause Siri to unleash some hilarious responses that are straight out of Game of Thrones.
Take a look at some of these funny answers:
HBO’s Game of Thrones is the hottest show on TV right thanks to Khaleesi and her dragons, now with the new Garageband update for China you can embrace your inner Westerbro create the entire GoT theme song in minutes.
Playing the theme song is actually amazingly easy now that Apple has added new instruments like the Pipa, Erhu, and Chinese Drum Kit that can more easily recreate the ancient sound much better than a Fender Stratocaster.
Apple superfan iPhonedo put together a quick guide on how to unlock the new Chinese instruments and create the Game of Thrones song in just minutes:
Starz is finally getting into the streaming business.
The premium cable network revealed today that it is launching a standalone streaming service on iOS, Apple TV, and other platforms today. The Starz digital service gives you yet another monthly subscription to pay for, but the company has one killer feature it hopes will put it above the competition.
Silicon Valley, the HBO comedy about the hard knocks of startup life, is coming back for its third season this April, and based on the first trailer that was released today, it’s going to be every bit as whacky as the first two seasons, if not more.
The Pied Piper gang gets a new CEO to kick things off, after last season ended with founder and CEO Richard Hendricks getting booted from his top spot by the board. It appears that Richard hasn’t completely left the company despite getting fired, while Gavin Belson and the Piper’s other rivals are still trying to kill the nerdy compression company.
Watch the first trailer below:
Amazon’s Instant Video service has one of the best libraries in the world, but if you’re an Apple user, it has a crucial weakness: the only way to get it on Apple TV is to AirPlay it from an iOS or OS X device.
AirPlaying can be unreliable at times and you can’t use certain apps without cutting off your Amazon stream. That could change in just a few weeks though, according to an Amazon employee who let it slip that the company is working on an app for the new Apple TV.
Apple is looking to create its own original content, and according to a new report, that almost included signing former ESPN ‘Sports Guy’ Bill Simmons to provide an exclusive podcast for Apple users.
ESPN abrupty announced that they would not be renewing Simmons’ contract earlier this year, which led Apple media boss Eddy Cue to gauge the ESPN star’s interest in creating an exclusive audio podcast deal, before he decided to sign on a multi-platform deal with HBO.
