r/movies • u/MarvelsGrantMan136 r/Movies contributor • 16d ago

News Apple Losing Over $1 Billion a Year on Streaming Service

https://www.reuters.com/technology/apple-losing-over-1-billion-year-streaming-service-information-reports-2025-03-20/
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u/CanisMajoris85 16d ago

Gee, who ever would do such a thing? Certainly not Netflix, Disney, Hulu, Paramount, Peacock, Starz, Max or anyone else.

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u/cookedart 16d ago

Netflix is the odd one out here as they are actually profitable. All the others are funneling money in just like Apple is.

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u/CanisMajoris85 16d ago

Netflix is further along in the process, yes.

It's just funny how often the others have to do like $1-3/month type deals which is the only reason I have some of them at times. Been paying $3 for Disney+Hulu for like the past 2 years and then Peacock $20/year so under $2/month. Also Starz when we need it for like $1-3/month sometimes.

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u/mangosail 16d ago

Netflix has mostly been generating net profit during its entire streaming run (and prior). It’s been profitable since it went public in 2007.

There are a lot of meaningful differences between the world Netflix got to grow in and the modern environment. But it’s not true that they followed the loss leader strategy. They grew sustainably at all points.

So far, we don’t yet have a streamer that has proven that adding users at a loss eventually pays off.

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u/beowolfey 15d ago

In a random anecdote, I just canceled my Netflix account today. First time I've ended it in probably a decade. We never watch it anymore, and the price just got too high.

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u/DJanomaly 16d ago

Disney Plus is actually profitable now too. But your point still stands.

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u/mangosail 16d ago

Yes but they have yet to prove they can deliver consistent growth while also being profitable. That’s the Netflix secret sauce

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u/DJanomaly 16d ago

They’ve been profitable for 10 months now and growing very rapidly since their inception.

But yes, they need to keep that up for a few more years to get on the same level as Netflix. But then again, this is Disney we're talking about.

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u/newrimmmer93 15d ago

Sort of different for Disney though I feel since their catalog is full of culture landmarks and they have the seemingly unique part of it being pretty big for children

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u/Enchelion 15d ago

Yeah, nobody has a 1st-party catalogue quite like Disney.

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u/newrimmmer93 15d ago

HBO for adult males is really strong based on their TV catalog, but Disney has so much for kids and adults I think it covers most demographics

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u/aurumae 16d ago

The real difference is that Apple never needs its streaming platform to become profitable. If they feel it helps boost sales for their real cash cow then they’ll keep investing in it

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u/Jarmom 16d ago

After existing for FAR FAR LONGER than any other streaming service. Of course they have the largest customer base, the largest content catalog, and hence the most money. Netflix 4k costs nearly the same as my entire Apple One plan, which includes iCloud storage, Apple Arcade, Apple Music, and Apple TV.

Netflix started streaming in 2007. 18 years ago.

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u/Buttersaucewac 16d ago

Netflix is also available globally (minus a couple of obvious exceptions like North Korea) and a lot of their library is globally consistent. Services like Disney+, Paramount, Starz, etc are available in far far fewer places, sometimes only 5% of the world. Netflix produces a lot of content specifically targeting regions like Korea, India, South America, etc, which most of its rivals don’t. Some of this content is only break-even right now but its existence ensures that Netflix is far more embedded as those regions get wealthier and tech and streaming infrastructure improves there, it’s a good long-term investment. Apple and Amazon are the only other streamers even pursuing a global strategy, Apple is still making a fraction of the content (though going for a more HBO/premium style approach to it) and Amazon’s library is incredibly inconsistent globally, often being a random assortment of whatever licensed content they can acquire for a given country and weirdly frequently missing their own originals because they got licensed out years ago. (And when I say random assortment, it really feels that way. Sometimes you’ll see them only have one or two seasons of a five-season show, because a rival service owns that show in the region and only licensed it to Amazon to whet appetites for the remaining seasons, making Amazon effectively advertise their own rivals.)

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u/callisstaa 15d ago

Netflix isn’t available in mainland China whereas Apple TV is. I wouldn’t consider 1.4 billion people to be a negligible exception.

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u/cookedart 16d ago

Netflix has been profitable since 2003, and been so every year since. They have the only sustainable business model of all of the streaming services.

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u/Rektw 16d ago

I know reddit hate Netflix but they're way ahead of the competition. They saw everyone pulling their license to start their own streaming service, so they decided to tap into international markets and bring in Asia/Euro media. Good or bad, they have at least 2 or 3 new things to watch weekly.

They've gotten really good at filling in the "I just need background noise while I do other stuff" spot that used to be for daytime television.

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u/livefreeordont 16d ago

I believe Hulu has been profitable

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u/Kitchen-Quality-3317 16d ago

Netflix started streaming in 2007

2007 Netflix was so different. I remember when you had to choose which server to watch a show on.

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u/FrostyD7 16d ago

Apple is also an odd one out because they are the only one that doesn't care yet. All of these companies were there once, but are several years into prioritizing profitability over growth.

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u/Spiritual-Society185 16d ago

That's really only the case for Disney+/Hulu and Max. The others are still significantly cheaper. Also, Apple is putting out a very limited number of movies and series compared to everyone else.

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u/nonamenomonet 16d ago

Netflix has been around for close to 30 years though.

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u/breno_hd 15d ago

Apple is making 15-30% of all subs made through App Store. Other services are funding their. That's why competition against Apple Music and YouTube Music is unfair.

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u/Uthenara 14d ago

Netflix has a massive amount of debt they are paying off.

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u/neon 16d ago

Netflix is very much profitable and has been for some time. Your point stands on others but at least media spend makes sense for media companies like Disney

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u/CanisMajoris85 16d ago

Yes, but how long did Netflix have to set streaming prices below what was profitable? They had the DVD service going until 2023, I imagine it was the primary source of income for a few years when they first started streaming.

Netflix is just a decade ahead of the others in raising prices to what becomes profitable.

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u/bunnyjenkins 16d ago

Not only are these companies making loads of cash with our subscriptions, but loads and load more from advertisers, all while using our internet to deliver said ads, and they STILL raise subscription prices.