There is a lot i don't understand about how they view things in Cupertino.
I mean, there must be a lot of people at Apple thinking about the future - what it will look like, how media is consumed and then again how Apple can own that pipeline and ecosystem.
Both on the media side, hardware side and software side the offering is lacking in ways i find very strange coming from Apple.
For instance why haven't Apple just gotten the internet broadcast rights to a lot of sports to build a moat around it - not because it is popular but because they can. With Apples finances they could also get alot of popular sports on Apple TV as well.
Why didn't Apple buy any movie studios to kickstart Apple TV and get a big catalogue from the get go - seems like a no brainer.
Apple does a lot of stuff right, but there are more than a few areas where they fail to really provide value.
>For instance why haven't Apple just gotten the internet broadcast right to a lot of sports to build a moat around it -
It is possible that they want all or nothing rights. There are a ton of complicated rules by NHL/MLB/NFL/NBA on blackout games, parceling out different games to different broadcasters in different areas, and then of course, different broadcasters by country. All with different contract expiry dates.
I will not pay for sports until the sports organizations make it easy to find everything (within their sports org) in one place.
Yes, I think blackouts are sticking point for Apple because it is a terrible user experience. Their MLB Friday games are not subject to blackout rules, which is different from the MLB app experience.
Sports are an interesting approach for Apple, but in a way it makes sense as it is an area that has the opportunity to be disrupted. People loves sports but the consumption of sports can be a frustrating experience. Many leagues still do not have a good streaming experience and the leagues that do, such as MLB, are subject to blackout rules. If Apple can cut through the red tape to eliminate blackout rules and create a white-labeled app experience for sports leagues it might be lucrative for Apple and beneficial to the league and their fans.
I think this is the key - Apple is painfully famous for "it may be expensive, but it's really simple" - iTunes music was the same way. They want you to not have to think about it at all, so they want all or nothing (the all, of course, being available for a Price).
A lot of those rights are already bought up, in some sports. I suspect Apple will need to wait til those contracts expire, no matter how much they are willing to spend.
As for Apple TV+, no, it's not a no-brainer. The approach they took was to sign up a lot of creative talent, instead, and make their own content. That's already been a proven success, so it's hard to say that a diametrically-opposed approach (which is kind of lame and would not even result in any new content) was a "no-brainer".
> For instance why haven't Apple just gotten the internet broadcast rights to a lot of sports to build a moat around it - not because it is popular but because they can. With Apples finances they could also get alot of popular sports on Apple TV as well
Because it's not in the interest of those sports leagues to kill off their viewing audiences. The average person who has cable has ESPN channels as part of their basic cable package. You don't even NEED cable to watch a lot of sports because terrestrial television has sports on constantly. The NFL realized a long time ago that there is a niche market for those who want a sheer firehose of content... but the vast majority will not directly pay for it. Sports fans will just find something else to occupy their time with.
I mean, there must be a lot of people at Apple thinking about the future - what it will look like, how media is consumed and then again how Apple can own that pipeline and ecosystem.
Both on the media side, hardware side and software side the offering is lacking in ways i find very strange coming from Apple.
For instance why haven't Apple just gotten the internet broadcast rights to a lot of sports to build a moat around it - not because it is popular but because they can. With Apples finances they could also get alot of popular sports on Apple TV as well.
Why didn't Apple buy any movie studios to kickstart Apple TV and get a big catalogue from the get go - seems like a no brainer.
Apple does a lot of stuff right, but there are more than a few areas where they fail to really provide value.