Little time? At the end of the text there is a summary.
Was that a show? Steven Spielberg was there and JJ Abrams, Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon and Steve Carrell. Even the TV host Oprah Winfrey, adored by many Americans, appeared. For more than half an hour, Hollywood greats on the stage at Apple's Steve Jobs Theater put the baton into their hands. Some talked about the pitfalls of creativity, others talked about the great coexistence of film production, and others simply promoted their new TV series.
It had to be like that. Television was the topic of the day, at Apple. And the corporation has delivered. Not only plenty of celebrities, but also plenty of announcements. Only with concrete information Apple had it on Monday not so. Much was promised, little said.
This also applies, but not only, the TV offer Apple TV +. For the new streaming service, Apple has produced several new series of and with the superstars on stage. These include comedy series such as "The Morning Show" about the pitfalls of American breakfast television as well as a remake of the fantasy series "Incredible Stories" directed by Steven Spielberg.
These stars were at the Apple show
Apple boss Tim Cook (l.) Is with moderator Oprah Winfrey and director Steven Spielberg in front of the Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino.
Actors Steve Carell, Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston (r.) Advertised the event for their new TV series "The Morning Show".
Fast Undercover: The Scottish actor Ewan MacGregor was not on stage, but had sat down in the audience.
The actor known as "Breaking Bad" Aaron Paul with his colleagues Octavia Spencer (center) and Alfre Woodard.
"Star Trek" director JJ Abrams was celebrated for his brief appearance by the audience.
Jane Krakowski (l.), Who is mainly known from "30 Rock", poses with Hailee Steinfeld.
The actor and director Tim Robbins was also there. However, only as a spectator.
Kumail Nanjiani is known for his role in the television series "Sillicon Valley".
There was a lot of talk about what's going on in new TV shows and how well it should be integrated into Apple's TV app. Only when exactly and at what price Apple wants to offer it all, that was not said.
Nor has it been explained what Apple Arcade will cost, the iOS gaming flat rate, macOS and tvOS to be included in Apple's offer this fall. More than 100 new and exclusive games will be available for hire there. If the price is right, a tempting offer. But you just do not know this price.
Even the announcement of Apple TV channels lacked important facts. In the future, Apple's customers will be able to subscribe to services such as HBO, Showtime or Starz, which have many fans due to in-house productions such as "Game of Thrones". Films and series of these providers should fit seamlessly into the TV app, so that they are ready to be watched directly in the Apple app. This is reminiscent of Amazon's Prime Video Channels, which work on the same principle.
So far, Apple has but only US offers announced, and said "there are more and more around the world." Which partners in Germany will be available for subscription via this service is unclear. Just as unclear are the prices. If Apple wants to reap its usual 30 percent commission, the providers represented in the channels would have to deduct this 30 percent from their profits. Or turn them up to their normal subscription prices. Netflix has been doing that for subscriptions sold through Apple for a long time. Who buys directly from the provider, looks cheaper.
Apple News for $ 9.99 - but not in Germany
The only new offer for which Apple has actually named a monthly price is Apple News +. The news app has been expanded with magazines and new presentation options and is now also the content of the "LA Times" and the "Wall Street Journal" in the program - if not all. The subscription costs $ 9.99 a month, but is currently available only in the US and Canada, is to be extended in the fall to the UK and Australia. Germany was not mentioned.
Two things came up in all this time and again: Firstly, Apple's managers at the presentation of the new services always stressed that Apple will not sell the data of its customers. On the other hand, the new offers should always be usable by several people within a family.
Apple bundles its TV offerings in a new version of its TV app, which will be released in May. On the one hand, that's comfortable: No matter which offer you use, you will always find it in the same app. On the other hand, this is important to expand the number of potential users. According to Apple, there are currently about 1.4 billion active Apple devices. To which will be added in the future several million smart TVs, set top boxes and Fire TV devices from Amazon, on which the new Apple TV app should also run.
The secret hit: The Apple Card
The highlight of the event, however, was the announcement of the Apple Card, a type of credit card, especially for Apple customers. The application should be made on the iPhone, very easy and be connected within minutes at best. Once done, the card can be used to pay with Apple Pay.
Apple offers its credit card as a savings model, does not claim royalties, overdraft interest or fees for use abroad. Instead, Apple Card users are credited with two percent of their daily revenues as credit. Apple calls this the "Daily Cash". Purchases at Apple itself are even rewarded with three percent of sales.
In order to be able to present themselves clearly as an Apple Card user to the outside and to pay everywhere where Apple Pay is not accepted, Apple Card customers will also receive a credit card. Because it is not made of plastic but of titanium, it will soon become a status symbol. On purchases made with this card, there is a credit of one percent of sales.
It all sounds tempting and the "Daily Cash" bonus program should be an incentive to use the card often. Only when this offer will come to Germany is unclear. In the US, it will start in summer.
In summary: Much is known about Apple's new offers even after the event on Monday. The start dates are spongy formulated, prices are usually not mentioned and also how the interaction with the partners who should fill the new offers with content, should look exactly, was not explained. What the event had to stars too much, she had too little numbers.