Why is nobody talking about #LittleAmerica? Oh yeah, it’s on AppleTV+.
I gotta say, out of the four shows I’ve watched on AppleTV+, so far I’m loving three of them (Little America, For All Mankind, & Morning Show). What other network or streaming service has that track record?
– Peter Sciretta via Twitter
Peter’s thoughts echo my feelings about Apple TV+ and the shows that Abby and I have been watching on the service – The Morning Show, For All Mankind, See, and Servant. We just wrapped up For All Mankind not long ago (holy cow, that finale) and devoured Servant week-by-week. We are near the end of The Morning Show and have half of See left. The two of us are shocked how much of a banger we think each of these shows are.
Granted, like Peter says in a follow-up tweet, there are plenty of shows on Apple TV+ that I haven’t watched, either because I am not interested in them (Dickinson and Helpsters for example) or I just haven’t made time due to the flood of new TV shows/rewatching Better Call Saul (Truth Be Told and Little America fit this mold). They can’t all be slam dunks either, right? Although, the press seems to be digging Little America quite a bit.
I certainly hear the praises for some of these shows online and on podcasts, like Upgrade. The echo chamber of Twitter is ringing with endorsements, but I don’t know anyone personally that has even seen these shows. Abby and I have done our due diligence as avid TV watchers. Particularly with For All Mankind, we have bugged my dad quite a bit about checking it out, knowing it would be right up his alley. I’ve told my space-loving friend about it too, but once he heard it is on Apple TV+, he seemed to check out.
I’m not sure if it is bias against Apple and its products (he is a ride-or-die PC and Android user) or just a lack of signing up for yet another streaming service, even as a trial. There is also the hurdle of actually using the service. Without owning an Apple device, users will either watch online or through the app on one of the listed devices/TVs. More platforms are coming soon according to Apple, but it clearly is not as wide spread as streaming titans like Netflix or Hulu. Apple TV+ is just not as convenient.
A major convenience is there for anyone who has bought a new Apple product since September 10, 2019 with Apple offering a free year of Apple TV+. If you don’t buy a new Apple device, the low entry fee of $5 a month is enticing when compared to the $15 or so for Netflix. This is certainly working too with reports of a 33.6 million customer base in the US during Q4 2019. That is over half of Netflix’s 61.3 million reported in that same quarter.
Maybe the odds are not in my favor and I just do not have personal friends within that 33.6 million. I do wonder though that if these shows were on HBO or Netflix, if I’d have an easier time getting friends to give them a shot or even sign up for a service.
As a platform (the Apple TV app) and as a service (Apple TV+), I am slightly reminded of iTunes. Before its death in late 2019, iTunes was a behemoth. It was even a huge deal when Apple brought it to Windows. The Apple TV app and its “+” service are in relative infancy if it is to grow into the platform Apple surely hopes to make it.
The streaming wars are full-steam ahead. While Apple has had a strong start, I wonder if they can keep their user base going after these free trials expire. I wonder if the quality of the content will continue to surpass my expectations (or just be consistent with the bar they’ve set so far, that’d be great too). I wonder what the introduction of even more services will do. I am excited to keep on watching though: Both the shows and the service as they develop.