History of Apple TV+
Apple had long been rumored to have an interest in beginning a streaming television service, and in 2015 entered into negotiations with various television studios and programmers to aggregate their content for a live-television streaming bundle. Negotiations fell apart over differing views on how to value the content, lack of transparency on details, and the personality of Apple's chief negotiator, Eddy Cue. In October 2016, Apple CEO Tim Cook was reported as saying that television is "of intense interest to me and other people here." He added that Apple has "started focusing on some original content" which he called "a great opportunity for us both from a creation point of view and an ownership point of view. So it's an area we're focused on." On March 25, 2019, Apple held a press event to announce Apple TV+. At the event, Apple showed a teaser of its upcoming original content and formally announced some of its content, with actors and producers attached to the content appearing on stage. The announced content included Helpsters, the first series from Sesame Workshop, the producer of Sesame Street, and Oprah Winfrey's first projects for Apple TV+, including a documentary under the working title Toxic Labor about workplace sexual harassment, a documentary series about mental health as well as a revival of Oprah's Book Club as a standalone television series. On September 10, 2019, Apple announced that Apple TV+ would launch on November 1, 2019, at $4.99 per month (with a 1-week free trial) for an account that can be shared with up to six family members. Apple also announced that they would be giving away a year of Apple TV+ for free to anyone who bought a new Apple TV, Mac, iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch beginning that same day. Student subscribers to the monthly Apple Music service at a discounted rate also have Apple TV+ bundled in at no additional cost for the time being.
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About Apple TV+
Apple TV+ is Apple's home for original films and series. It is available on a monthly subscription and available across several platforms through the latest version of the Apple TV app. Apple TV+ offers ad-free, exclusive content that's been either green-lit or produced in-house by Apple itself. To help ensure the success of its first foray into original content, Apple partnered with some of the biggest names in Hollywood, such as Steven Spielberg, Oprah Winfrey, JJ Abrams, and even Big Bird. Apple TV+ is available in over 100 countries, including the US and UK. Apple's services bundle for Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, and Fitness+ launched in October 2020. That means you can now subscribe to Apple TV+ through one of three different Apple One bundle tiers: Individual, Family, and Premier. Apple One's Individual and Family plans are available in over 100 countries and regions, including in the US and UK. The Premier plan also launched, but only in the US, UK, Canada, and Australia.
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