Apple
AAPL
is keeping no stone unturned to increase the popularity of its Apple TV+ streaming service. The company has ordered a new series —
Sugar
— starring Colin Farrell, per a 9TO5Mac report. Farrell, along with Simon Kinberg (
X-Men
), Audrey Chon (
Invasion
), and Scott Greenberg (
The Guilty
), will serve as an executive producer.
Apple TV+ outbid
Netflix
NFLX
to win the rights of
Sugar
. Apple TV+ is gaining solid reputation, with
Ted Lasso
winning multiple Emmy Awards and
CODA
winning three Academy Awards. Apple TV+’s Academy Award win over primary streaming competitor Netflix’s
The Power of the Dog
has boosted its position in the streaming industry as a serious competitor.
Apple recently inked a multi-year exclusive deal with Playtone, headed by Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman. Apple and Hanks also recently completed the production of the WWII series,
Masters of the Air
.
The addition of prominent content creators like Hanks definitely boosts Apple’s prospects in the increasingly competitive streaming market currently dominated by Netflix, besides robust offerings from streaming services by
Disney
DIS
and
Amazon
AMZN
.
Apple has been trying to expand its footprint in different genres to attract viewers. Apple TV+ recently gained the rights to stream weekly Major League Baseball (“MLB”) games, including two Friday night games.
The announcement of the Apple-MLB deal marks Apple’s entry into the lucrative live sports market currently dominated by the likes of Disney (through ESPN), Fox Sports, NBC and CBS. Streaming service providers like Apple and Amazon are new entrants in this market space.
Amazon, however, is well ahead of Apple in this scenario. In 2021, the National Football League announced a new series of long-term TV deals, including a contract with Amazon, under which the latter’s streaming service, prime video, became the exclusive broadcaster of Thursday Night Football, beginning with the 2022 season.
Apple TV+ is offered at a lower price than its competitors in the United States. The low cost, along with great content, is expected to aid this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company in attracting subscribers in the long haul.
What Awaits Apple Shares in 2022?
Apple shares have outperformed the Zacks
Computer & Technology
sector year to date. Apple shares are down 19.7% compared with the sector’s decline of 27.6%.
Apple has been struggling so far in 2022, primarily due to coronavirus-induced supply-chain disruptions, industry-wide silicon shortage, unfavorable forex and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.
The near-term outlook is not enthusiastic, given the headwinds. Apple did not provide revenue guidance for the third quarter of fiscal 2022. Apple expects COVID-induced supply chain disruptions and the industry-wide silicon shortage to hurt the top line by $4-$8 billion. Unfavorable forex is also expected to hurt revenues by 300 basis points (bps).
Moreover, the absence of revenues from Russia will hurt the top line by 150 bps. Apple paused all sales in Russia during the fiscal second quarter (March quarter).
However, growing adoption of services like Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, Apple Card and Apple Fitness+ drives Services’ revenue growth, which is expected to be in strong double digits for the June quarter.
In the second quarter of fiscal 2022, Apple’s Services revenues grew 17.3% from the year-ago quarter to $19.82 billion and accounted for 20.4% of sales.
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