Apple has announced that iTunes films will be available on Samsung smart TVs, ending the company’s insistence that users buy an Apple TV to watch their purchases on a big screen.
Fifteen years after Steve Jobs launched iTunes for Windows, quipping that he was “giving a glass of ice water to somebody in hell”, the move signals a wider opening up of the Apple ecosystem, with TV manufacturers including Sony, LG and Vizio announcing integration with Apple’s AirPlay 2 streaming technology, to allow users to broadcast from their phones or tablets directly to their televisions.
Apple’s senior vice-president of internet software and services, Eddy Cue, said: “We look forward to bringing the iTunes and AirPlay 2 experience to even more customers around the world through Samsung smart TVs, so iPhone, iPad and Mac users have yet another way to enjoy all their favourite content on the biggest screen in their home.”
The news follows an unexpected profit warning from Apple, which blamed a slowdown in China for a $5bn (£4bn) reduction in the company’s expected revenue, as worldwide predictions showed customers are likely to purchase fewer iPhones, Macs and iPads than previous estimates had suggested.
After that warning, which wiped 7.5% off the company’s shares, Apple told investors that one ray of light was the company’s services division, which includes revenue from the App Store, iCloud online services, and Apple Music and the iTunes stores.
“Revenue outside of our iPhone business grew by almost 19% year over year, including all-time record revenue from services, wearables and Mac,” wrote the chief executive, Tim Cook, in a letter to shareholders.
“Our non-iPhone businesses have less exposure to emerging markets, and the vast majority of services revenue is related to the size of the installed base, not current period sales.
“Services generated over $10.8bn in revenues during the quarter, growing to a new quarterly record in every geographic segment, and we are on track to achieve our goal of doubling the size of this business from 2016 to 2020.”
By bringing iTunes to TVs made by competitors, Apple is hoping it can grow services revenue without harming device revenue from top-tier product lines.
The Apple TV, sales of which are likely to be dented by the shift, has not been particularly profitable, with the £179 device viewed as overpriced compared with similar offerings from Amazon, Roku and Google.
The iTunes and Samsung tie-up has reignited speculation that Apple is preparing to launch a Netflix competitor, either by bundling in a new TV streaming service with its Apple Music platform, or by combining both features with its wider iCloud service, which offers online storage and syncing to owners of the company’s hardware products.
The service is expected to launch in the US in the next few months, expanding rapidly to more than 100 countries, according to the tech news site The Information.
The company had a reported $1bn budget for original content last year, and has a few original shows available for Apple Music subscribers, including James Corden’s Carpool Karaoke, and Planet of the Apps, a Dragons’ Den-style programme in which budding developers pitch their software to Gwyneth Paltrow, Jessica Alba, will.i.am and the YouTuber Gary Vaynerchuk.