Apple today announced Apple TV+, the new home for the “world’s most creative storytellers” featuring exclusive origin. It’s coming this fall to over 100 countires, but pricing (and a lot of other details) have yet to be announced.
The company’s original video subscription service will feature a brand new slate of programming from such artists as Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg, Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, Octavia Spencer, J.J. Abrams, Jason Momoa, M. Night Shyamalan, Jon M. Chu and more.
Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht, former Sony execs who moved to Apple to oversee worldwide video programming, were on stage at today’s “It’s show time” event to introduce the new service. Also on stage at various times were Steven Spielberg, Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston, Steve Carrell, Kumali Nanjiani, J.J. Abrams, Sara Bareilles, Oprah Winfrey, and, well, Big Bird to talk about their upcoming shows on the service.
Apple TV+’s content will be available whether you’re on or offline. Additionally, Apple debuted the all-new Apple TV app and Apple TV channels coming in May 2019. The all-new Apple TV app brings together the different ways to discover and watch shows, movies, sports, news and more in one app across iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Mac, smart TVs and streaming devices.
The all-new Apple TV app will come to iOS and tvOS users via a free software update this May, and to macOS this fall. Through Family Sharing, users can share Apple TV+ and subscriptions to Apple TV channels.
The Apple TV app will be available on Samsung smart TVs beginning this spring and on Amazon Fire TV, LG, Roku, Sony and VIZIO platforms in the future. Later this year, customers with eligible VIZIO, Samsung, LG and Sony smart TVs will be able to effortlessly play videos and other content from their iPhone or iPad directly to their smart TVs with AirPlay 2 support.
Users can subscribe to and watch new Apple TV channels — paying for only services they want, like HBO, SHOWTIME and Starz — all on demand, available on and offline. They can enjoy sports, news and network TV from cable and satellite providers as well as purchase or rent iTunes movies and TV shows all within the new, personalized Apple TV app.
Beginning in May, customers can subscribe to Apple TV channels à la carte and watch them in the Apple TV app, with no additional apps, accounts or passwords required. Apple TV channels include popular services such as HBO, Starz, SHOWTIME, CBS All Access, Smithsonian Channel, EPIX, Tastemade, Noggin and new services like MTV Hits, with more to be added over time around the world.
The new Apple TV app personalizes what viewers love to watch across their existing apps and services while developing a secure and comprehensive understanding of users’ viewing interests, according to Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. The app will offer suggestions for shows and movies from over 150 streaming apps, including Amazon Prime and Hulu, as well as pay-TV services such as Canal+, Charter Spectrum, DIRECTV NOW and PlayStation Vue. Optimum and Suddenlink from Altice will be added later this year.
