Apple’s Video Streaming Service Is Coming On Monday, But What Will It Look Like?

Apple’s upcoming video service is expected to ultimately offer both the company’s own original content as well as a collection of participating third-party premium channels. We’ve already talked about what we’d like to see in Apple’s new video service, and while we’ve long suspected that Apple is planning to bundle these third-party channels into a single subscription package, new reports are not only confirming that this is the case, but suggesting that it may actually be Apple’s core business model for the new service.

Separate reports from The Information and Recode reveal that Apple has made enough deals with other media firms that it’s ready to announce a bundle of TV channels on Monday, but that right now it’s not looking to actually compete with services like Netflix — at least not in the short term.

Not the least of this is probably due to the fact that Apple doesn’t plan to have any original content available until later this year, however as we’ve already noted before, Apple likely isn’t even trying to compete with Netflix, but instead to carve out its own unique place in a streaming landscape that’s already dominated by established players.

In the short term, however, reports suggest that the new service may not look all that different from what Apple has already been doing with its TV app for a couple of years now — allowing multiple third-party media providers to have their content featured and searchable through a single media hub. Up until now, however, Apple’s TV app has required users to sign up for services individually, outside of the TV app and often using those services’ own iOS of tvOS apps — for which Apple already takes a cut. If Apple’s new service is focused on third-party content providers, it seems that the only big difference will be Apple allowing customers to sign up for multiple services with a single subscription.

The move shouldn’t come as a surprise, of course, as this is exactly what Apple is trying to do with its premium news and magazine service, based on the idea that publishers and media companies can gain more customers by joining Apple’s unified subscription model than they can get by going it alone, and Apple is further banking on the fact that more and more consumers are suffering from “subscription fatigue” as they juggle multiple services and subscriptions.

However, the new reports are suggesting that Apple’s approach may in fact be a little more complicated than simply offering a single flat-rate bundle. For instance, Apple could create an entirely new storefront for Apple TV users that would offer multiple bundles of content, similar to what cable providers have been doing for years. This latter approach seems to be less likely — it’s just not really Apple’s style — but it may be grudgingly required based on the deals that Apple has had to work out with third-party media providers. Still, multiple bundles have a downside for the media providers as well — a single, flat-rate bundle guarantees more subscribers overall than allowing users to pick and choose, and as magazine publishers have come to realize, it’s often more lucrative to simply have a smaller piece of a significantly larger pie.

Regardless of how Apple chooses to market such bundles, however, the move itself would be an unprecedented one among streaming providers. Competing services like Amazon Prime already offer the ability to sign up for various individual streaming services, but nobody in the streaming industry has yet attempted to create a bundle that would allow people to get several services for one fixed price.

While players like Netflix and Hulu are unlikely to ever sign-on with Apple’s service, the company does reportedly already have around 15 streaming providers on board for Monday’s launch, which includes a collection of smaller digital-old services like Cheddar and Tastemade alongside the big players like Showtime and Starz. While there’s been reports of HBO also joining the lineup, sources say the two companies have not yet signed a deal.

It’s also unclear whether Apple’s bundles would include all of the same content as the individual streaming services themselves. It’s entirely possible that some may include “lite” versions that either exclude hit shows (if HBO actually comes on board, for example, Game of Thrones might not be available), or limit access to the full back-catalog of older shows. However, this would make Apple’s bundle feel more like a “trial” for third-party services, so we’re fairly sure that this is something Apple prefers to avoid — and may in fact be one of the sticking points in its negotiations with big players like HBO.

It’s also unclear whether Apple will continue offering — or at least promoting — individual subscriptions. For example, if Showtime is available as part of Apple’s Premium TV Bundle, will users still be able to purchase Showtime separately, and if so, is Apple going to promote this as an option — such as on a new “TV Storefront” or simply leave it as something that users can discover for themselves.

One thing that’s likely key to Apple’s success in this area is going to be bringing its trademark “Just Works” simplicity to its new streaming service. Steve Jobs famously said years ago that he had “cracked the secret” to revolutionizing television, and after decades of complicated cable boxes and inscrutable channel bundling options from cable companies, it now seems that the internet streaming landscape is making most of the same mistakes, creating incredible frustration, confusion, and fatigue among consumers who are now often spending more time figuring out how to watch their favourite television shows than actually watching them. If Apple can simplify that process, it’s going to have a winning strategy on its hands and will have created a streaming service worth paying for.

[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]