Apple has today invited the press to a special event on March 25 at Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino.
Apple officially announced the event with the tagline “It’s show time”, which would appear to confirm that the rumours are correct, and that the focus of the event will be on Apple's long-anticipated original content video service.
In it's round-up of what's already known about the video service, 9to5Mac offers some information on the content we should expect:
Apple has signed dozens of TV shows and movies for its streaming video service. The shows range from sci-fi to comedy to drama and include star-studded casts.
While Netflix original content is notorious for being unapologetically raunchy, Apple is taking a different approach. A pair of reports from Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal have outlined Apple’s aversion to adult language, violence, and nudity in its TV shows.
According to The WSJ, of the shows Apple is producing, “only a few” will veer into TV-MA territory. Bloomberg, meanwhile, says that Apple wants its TV shows to be “suitable for an Apple Store” and is focusing on “comedies and emotional dramas” similar to what you might see on NBC.
It is also likely that the March 25 event will see the launch of a magazines and news subscription service, with 9to5Mac saying:
Apple has reportedly been working with both magazine and newspaper publishers to secure content for a subscription version of the Apple News app, and 9to5Mac has discovered assets for Apple News Magazines and more.
Magazine publishers are reportedly happier with the proposed revenue split than news organizations, however, so there’s still a big question about which publications will be included in Apple’s service. We also don’t yet know how Apple will price and present the paid version of Apple News. Bundled or standalone only?
Some rumours have hinted that Apple is working on a gaming subscription service. But, if true, it's likely that this may not be ready for ‘prime time’ just yet.
What is more likely, is that Apple will seek to entice people to its new services by offering one or more bundle options, which could allow users to bundle new services with Apple's iPhone Upgrade Program, AppleCare, Apple Music, and additional iCloud storage.
As for hardware, the products occasionally being mentioned as possible for the March 25 event are a minor refresh for the 9.7-inch iPad, a upgraded iPad Mini, the long-awaited AirPower charging pad, second generation AirPods, and the possibility of a new iPod touch. However, as none of these are particularly notable, it's possible that Apple may announce any new hardware via press releases rather than on stage on March 25.
As always, we would love to hear what you are expecting or hoping that Apple will announce at this event. Let us know by posting a comment below.
Comments
event
Well. I am not going to pay for news subscription. I will use broken or microsoft news app. Regarding TV and movies well I do not use cable and not planning. I do not think people who already to use those services such as hulu or netflics will add it specially if the shows are like disney. It seem that apple are moving away from what they do best such as PC, phones and other technology just to get more money. Most news places are not interested in pay news at this time because apple wants %50 and all who are part of the service will split the rest. I like my iPhone and watch but I am not going to pay for services I can get from other free apps.
Newspapers and magazines
I already get most of my newspapers and magazines from other sources, principally the Kindle. The only chance I would pay for a news or magazine subscription would be if Appple manages to draw in a publication that I can't get via the Kindle or elsewhere. If, for example, a full text version of Private Eye were to be on offer, well i'd pay for that....but Private Eye isn't available electronically anywhere, I don't think, notwithstanding demand from sighted and blind communities alike, so I don't see that happening. It may be that I am behind the times - I prefer the traditional newspaper, or traditional news sources such as Sky News or the BBC, to reading random articles from all over the place online, hence why I don't use apple News that much in its current incarnation.
Charging Pad
Personally, I'm looking forward to the new charging pad and am wondering if this would be good for me. The reason I say that is I currently have kinda a lot of cords, and I think they might be creating sort of a problem with the wi-fi here. I might be totally off the mark on this one, but that is what some people have suggested to me including the technician who was here on Friday. Regarding the news subscriptions and so forth, the NFB Newsline portals are my go-to for that. I also frequently watch "Meet the Press" and "This Week with George S..." with my neighbor across the hall. Other than that I haven't read/watched the news much in recent years, especially given our dangerous political climate. But I'm straying off topic there.
charging pad
Hope you have $240 or more. Apple likes to have money and it will be very, very expensive.
subscriptions
I get all of my news and magazines from either Newsline or Bard. Besides, I think magazines are on the way out and I'm sticking with the unedited Netflix programming as I don't believe in sensorship so I personally don't think Apple will do well with this new video streaming service. Just my two cents worth.