Apple Music Exclusives: Company To Produce Original TV Shows, Movies For Subscribers

Apple already has the Apple TV, now the company may be interested in making its own content. According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, Apple is planning to start producing original TV shows and movies.

The content would become an added incentive to subscribers of Apple Music, the company’s $10-per-month streaming music service that launched in 2015. The more than 20 million subscribers to Apple Music would have exclusive access, giving the service a potential selling point that would help it catch up to Spotify, which has double the amount paying members as Apple’s offering.

According to the reports, Apple has already been in touch with veteran Hollywood producers and has been looking to purchase the rights to scripted TV programs. The company has also pursued market executives at studios and networks to discuss approaches to promoting the content.

The Cupertino company is looking for shows that will reach acclaim like HBO’s Westworld or Netflix’s Stranger Things —though replicating that success is easier said than done.

However Apple isn’t looking to flood the already crowded market of original content, where it would be competing with Netflix, Amazon and cable networks. It’s instead aiming to pick just a few hand-picked shows or movies at a time.

Apple reportedly has told some Hollywood players it hopes to start offering original scripted content by the end of 2017.

While the plan would mark the company’s first step into scripted territory, Apple has already started pursuing original content to bolster its Apple Music service. Last year, Apple bought the rights to an extended version of Carpool Karaoke —a popular segment on The Late Late Show with James Corden which regularly gets millions of viewers on YouTube.

Apple’s first bit of scripted content will be a semi-autobiographical series about Dr. Dre, the rap legend and current Apple Music executive. The show is set to premiere later this year, and will reportedly feature at least one orgy scene, according to the Hollywood Reporter.