Apple Launches Streaming Service and Credit Card
courtesy of Free America Network
On March 25, Apple debuted a number of new services at their annual spring event. Among these new services includes a streaming service called Apple TV+. The featured content will showcase popular program in addition to content produced by Apple and many big Hollywood names, such as Oprah, Jennifer Aniston, and Steven Spielberg. The new promotional video for the service featured titles such as Dear…, For All Mankind, The Morning Show, See, and more. However, the company didn’t say the cost of the service.
In addition, the company announced Apple+ News service, a subscription costing $9.99 per month. The service will make it easy to have “full access to hundreds of magazines and leading newspapers… all in one place,” according to the Apple website. Readers will be able to read through current and past issues, as well as download, save, and recommend issues. Titles include The Wall Street Journal, Vogue, ESPN, and People. Apple News+ will reinforce the Apple newsstand application, which already gives readers a personalized newsfeed with breaking news notifications even without Apple News+.
Apple Pay will also be partnering with Goldman Sachs to launch a new Apple-brand credit card. The Apple Card brands itself with “simplicity, transparency, and privacy,” and is said to encourage users to pay less interest. Users can buy things with just their iPhones, or opt to use Apple’s designed titanium card. The card promotes that with every purchase made on the Apple Card, users are able to get a percentage of the purchase back as “Daily Cash” which they can then spend as real money. On the Wallet app, users will also be able to pinpoint charges on Maps and see their purchases categorized and colorized. Apple also boasts no feeds and some of the lowest interest rates in the country. A number of measures are used to protect users’ privacy, including “Face ID, Touch ID, [and] unique transaction codes.”
For gamers, Apple Arcade was announced to come this fall. The gaming bundle includes over 100 new games, and the all-you-can-play service offers no ads and no in-app purchases. It’s also multi-platform and allows gamers to play offline “anytime, anywhere.” Apple Arcade has been working with developers such as Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of the Final Fantasy franchise and Rebekah Saltsman.
With Apple’s recent announcements of the release of their newest services, many are waiting with anticipation for the new content Apple will release, especially in regards to games, movie, and TV content. Unlike which is $8.34 billion in debt as of last September––Apple definitely has the funds to create some award-winning original content on their streaming service, hopefully drawing millions into a subscription.
While many college students may find themselves too #broke to afford a lot of these services, we might just be drawn in if they give us something worth binge-watching.