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Apple ups TV+ budget, takes on Disney+

Apple CEO Tim Cook unveils TV+

Apple has raised the content budget for its upcoming video streaming service by US$5bn and set November for the launch, according to reports.

The company, which took the wraps off Apple TV+ in March, has around 30 productions in the works including Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston and Steve Carrell comedy The Morning Show, an Amazing Stories revival from Steven Spielberg and Jason Momoa sci-fi drama See from Peaky Blinders scribe Steven Knight.

Having committed an initial US$1bn to develop these projects under former Sony execs Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht, Apple has now raised its spend beyond US$6bn, according to The Financial Times.

The budget for The Morning Show alone is pegged at US$300m for two 10-episode seasons, equating to US$15m per episode, which is more than Game of Thrones.

Apple TV+ will debut by November, according to Bloomberg, ahead of Disney+, the Mouse House’s own attempt to curtail Netflix and claim a portion of the global streaming pie for itself.

The financial news service said Apple will charge US$9.99 per month in the US – more than Netflix’s lowest tier subscription and the equivalent to Amazon Prime Video, which both cost US$8.99. It will also be more than Disney+, priced at US$6.99 or US$12.99 with Hulu and ESPN+ bundled in.

Disney this week announced overseas versions of Disney+ will go live in Canada and the Netherlands on November 12 – the same day as its US debut – while Australia and New Zealand will be next on November 19.

The move comes as AT&T’s WarnerMedia gears up for the launch of HBO Max around the same time and Comcast’s NBCUniversal advances its own plans. Following confirmation of their proposed merger last week, CBS and Viacom are now plotting their own combined video streaming strategy.

While Apple’s content budget is still some way off Netflix’s reputed US$15bn spend this year, the company is offering producers more favourable terms, including payment much earlier in the process.

Apple has yet to confirm details of its pricing or how it intends to sell TV+ alongside the existing US$9.99 per month Apple Music service, but is expected to go live with its original programming in more than 100 countries.

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