Erich Schwartzel for the Wall Street Journal (paywall):
“As Walt Disney Co., AT&T Inc.’s WarnerMedia and Apple Inc. prepare to enter the crowded streaming-entertainment market, they are racing to stand out with eye-catching shows that cost as much for a season as a big-budget movie…
“…In the case of Apple’s See, the cost has neared $15 million for each roughly 60-minute episode, according to a person familiar with the matter. That is more than the cost of a typical independent feature film.
“See, set centuries in the future after a virus has wiped out much of Earth’s population and left survivors blind, appears to be taking cues from the Game of Thrones playbook of cinematic world-building. Footage shown at Apple’s programming event featured Mr. Momoa ready-set for battle alongside dozens of actors in sweeping vistas filmed in the fields and forests of British Columbia.”
Apple is working on dozens of shows for its Apple TV+ service. TV isn’t the only original content Apple is preparing – the company also supports dozens of game development projects for Apple Arcade.
MacDailyNews Take: See sounds like Apple’s attempt at a Game of Thrones-class series – but we rather imagine the company will take its hits where it finds them.
In a recent interview, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue described the company’s goal as “making the best” TV shows.
We should see the first of these shows appear in fall.
This makes me so crazy.
$15 million is nothing for Apple. They should have started cranking these out years ago. THE MINUTE they realized the television world would not play with them the way the music industry did, they should have fire up an original programming business unit.
They also need to get more serious about Apple News. It’s a great idea, that’s fell flat on its face in execution. It needs to get better faster. They did it with Music, so I know they can get it done. But how long will I be paying for Apple News while still reading my news via Google News and the NYT’s very good app, which waiting for Apple to get there???
Apple isn’t going to fix “the news” because it is an inherently dishonest and untrustworthy medium. It has never been self-supporting but always reliant on ultra-rich sponsors who use it as information warfare against working people who don’t want to pay for the political propaganda attacking them.