Apple is re-evaluating its spending on original content for Apple TV+, having invested an astonishing $20 billion on shows and movies that many viewers may not recognize. According to reports, Apple executive Eddy Cue has been in discussions with studio heads Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht about scaling back budgets. The duo has been communicating the need for the streaming service to move away from its image as the industry’s largest spender.
The company has allocated significant funds for various projects, including $250 million for the miniseries “Masters of Air,” which failed to gain traction upon release. Additionally, Apple has invested over $500 million in films from renowned directors such as Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott, and Matthew Vaughn.
Despite these large expenditures, Apple TV+ commands a mere 0.2% of TV viewership in the United States, with viewership figures trailing behind Netflix, which can achieve more views in a day than Apple TV+ does in an entire month. The platform has also faced challenges in growing its subscriber base.
While the issues facing Apple TV+ haven’t caused major concern within Apple, as streaming is not central to its business model, the era of unrestrained spending appears to be coming to an end. This shift is evident as the company has shown hesitancy in renewing several shows for third seasons, as per Bloomberg data.
Notably, Apple TV+ remains the only major streaming service without an advertising tier, but this may change soon following the appointment of Joseph Cady, an advertising executive from NBCUniversal, earlier this year.