Apples head of services and programming says that the company has adopted a quality-over-quantity mindset when it comes to its forthcoming Apple TV Plus service. This weekend, The Sunday Times released an interview with Apples senior vice president of Internet Software and Services, Eddy Cue, in which he talks about what to expect from the service forthcoming service, which is expected to launch later this fall.
The revelation is a rebuke to Netflix programming model: releasing as much original content as it can to attract viewers. In the interview, Cue says that Apple wont be “creating the most” original content for users, but will be “creating the best.” When asked about Netflixs model, he notes that theres “nothing wrong with that model, but its not our model.”
Apple is a latecomer to the streaming video industry, following companies such as Amazon, Hulu, and Netflix, which have already pulled in legions of loyal users, in part due to their efforts to produce their original content. Other media conglomerates are jumping in as well: Disney, NBCUniversal, and Warner Bros. have all announced their own platforms, which will launch this year and next.
Cue notes that Apple hasnt always been the leader when it comes to hardware, pointing out that they werent the first to produce computers, smartphones, or tablets. “We try to be the best, and we dont have to be the first to be the best,” he said. He explains that while Apple doesnt “know a lot about television other than we are big consumers of it,” what it does do is “find the best people for it.” The company brought on high-profile Hollywood executives, Jamie Erlicht and Zack Van Amburg (formerly of Sony), as well as Jay Hunt (formerly of the UKs Channel 4) to head up its television programming.
Under them, the company has lined up an impressive-looking slate of projects, with shows from people such as J.J. Abrams, Steven Spielberg, and Oprah Winfrey. However, while Apples slate sounds promising, weve only caught a glimpses: a sizzler reel
