A report on Monday claims Apple is budgeting more than $6 billion for its original content library for their upcoming Apple TV+ streaming service.
The Financial Times reports their sources tells them Apple’s Worldwide Video division has far surpassed its original $1 billion allowance, due to its eagerness to catch up with already established competitors like Netflix, HBO, and others. The new streaming service will also face stiff competition from the new Disney+ video service, set to debut in November.
Competitor Netflix, which is one of the more established streaming services currently available, is anticipated to spend around $15 billion on new content this year.
Meanwhile, the new Disney+ streaming service will have access to Disney’s entire back catalog of content, which includes popular movies from the Disney vault, which includes Star Wars and Marvel content, as well as the titles that are now available to them following their recent acquisition of 21st Century Fox.
Apple is reportedly digging into its deep pockets in a bid to hit the ground running when their Apple TV+ service debuts later this year. The Cupertino firm has spent hundreds of millions of dollars on “The Morning Show,” a series about the cutthroat world of morning television, The new show stars Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston, and Steve Carell.
In July, reports claimed Apple was spending as much as $15 million per episode on a vehicle for “Aquaman” star Jason Momoa, called “See.”
The report says that while Netflix pays its content creators over a period of years, Apple lays out the cash up front, and as productions meet certain milestones.
Although Apple has yet to announce a specific date for the Apple TV+ launch, or offer pricing details, today’s report claims the service will roll out sometime in the next two months.