For the first time ever, Apple is going outside the walled garden by offering its new streaming service to smart TVs from Samsung and others as well as to Roku and Amazon Fire TV.
Apple’s new streaming TV service, announced today at the Apple Event, will be named Apple TV+, and will launch this autumn across the world to over 100 countries.
Apple TV+ will be available on all Apple devices, which will also include Mac, and go outside the walled garden to smart TVs from Samsung, LG, Sony and Vizio, as well as to Roku and Amazon Fire TV. However, no details about pricing were announced. Last January, In a surprise move, Samsung has announced it will offer iTunes Movies and TV Shows and Apple AirPlay 2 support on 2019 Samsung Smart TV models beginning this spring, indicating that Apple is slowly opening up to others.
The new app will feature exclusive, Apple-developed series, documentaries and films as part of its paid video streaming service, showing productions by Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg, Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, Octavia Spencer, J.J. Abrams, Jason Momoa, M. Night Shyamalan, Jon M. Chu and many others.
Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon talk about their project, The Morning Show.
“For Apple TV+, we were delighted to be able to capture the cream of the TV and movie world,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s Senior Vice President, Internet Software and Services. “We are already giving viewers a foretaste and can hardly wait for Apple TV+ to start this autumn. TV and film lovers can look forward to top-quality movies and series.”
Apple has also announced the brand new Apple TV app and Apple TV Channels, which will be available from May 2019. In the new Apple TV app, viewers will find a wide range of films, TV series, sports broadcasts, news programmes and more on their iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Mac, smart TV or other streaming devices. Users can subscribe to new Apple TV Channels and only pay for channels they want to see, such as HBO, Showtime and Starz – all available on demand, both online and offline. In addition, the new all-personalised Apple TV app allows them to view sports, news and other content from cable and satellite channels, as well as purchase or rent iTunes movies and series.
Starting in May, customers can subscribe to their preferred channels and then watch them in the Apple TV app without the need for any other apps, accounts or passwords. The app features many watched services such as HBO, Starz, Showtime, CBS All Access, Smithsonian Channel, EPIX, Tastemade and Noggin, as well as new services such as MTV Hits. The range is also being further expanded worldwide.
The channels line-up of Apple TV Channels may not include Netflix, but brings access to Epix, CBS All Access, HBO, Showtime, Prime Video, Hulu, ESPN Plus, FX, Starz, Cinemax, Britbox, Sundance Now, PBS Living, Nick Hits, Mubi, Comedy Central Now, and many more. This line-up also includes linear OTT services such as Hulu, Charter,Charter Spectrum, Optimum, DirecTV, Playstation Vue and Fubo. Altice’s Suddenlink will be added later this year and in Europe Canal+ will be available in France.
In addition to announcing Apple TV+, Apple also announced Apple News Plus, an on-demand service for news junkies, adding an Apple credit card to Apple Pay, and rolling out the Apple Arcade gaming subscription service
