apple tv

Apple TV+ to launch ‘MLS Season Pass’ subscription on February 1 • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on November 16, 2022Posted in apple tv, major league soccer, Media & Entertainment, Sports, streaming serviceNo Comments

Today, Apple announced the launch date and price of its upcoming subscription service for Major League Soccer (MLS) fans, “MLS Season Pass.” Starting February 1, 2023, subscribers in 100+ countries and regions can get MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app for $14.99 per month during the season or $99 per season. Notably, Apple TV+ subscribers that sign up for MLS Season Pass only have to pay $12.99 per month or $79 per season. Viewers can stream MLS games on the Apple TV app on Apple devices, smart TVs, streaming devices, game consoles, set-top boxes, and the web. The company claims that the new subscription service will bring the league to its “biggest worldwide audience ever.” MLS Season Pass will likely be a great option for cord-cutters as it features all live MLS regular season matches, playoffs, hundreds of MLS NEXT Pro and MLS NEXT games, and the Leagues Cup match. Plus, there are no blackouts, the company says. So, soccer fans in over 100 territories will get to watch teams in or out of market. For comparison, ESPN+ streams up to 350 out-of-market MLS matchups for $9.99/month. Apple users can tune into the live game anytime and watch it from the start, so they don’t miss their favorite team. Games on MLS Season Pass will feature English and Spanish broadcasters. Canadian games will have commentary in French. Also, during match days, Apple will live stream an exclusive show on MLS Season Pass so viewers can watch game replays, highlights, and analysis. MLS 2023 regular season is set to begin on February 25 and will open with the Los Angeles FC against the LA Galaxy. During the “MLS is Back” opening weekend, Apple TV users don’t need an MLS Season Pass subscription since all these matches will be available to stream for free. Fans can expect to learn the league’s full 2023 schedule in mid-December. “We could not be more excited to bring our fans MLS Season Pass, a new home for all MLS matches and a wide variety of league and club content they can’t get anywhere else,” said Don Garber, MLS’s commissioner, in a statement. “We have the most engaged and passionate fans in sports, and now they’ll have every match everywhere with MLS Season Pass.” Apple’s announcement comes on the heels of the company closing a 10-year deal with MLS, a significant move pushing Apple further into the live sports streaming space. Apple TV+ currently only offers Friday Night Baseball games. As more media companies bid for sports streaming rights, Apple needs to be more aggressive with its live sports offerings. Reports have circulated for months that Apple may be the front-runner for NFL’s Sunday Ticket package. “There isn’t a more perfect time to introduce MLS Season Pass, coming off the heels of the most dramatic MLS Cup in history and with MLS as the fastest-growing soccer league in the world,” Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Services, added. “We’re counting down the days to February 2023 when fans everywhere can enjoy MLS Season Pass on billions of devices — all with no blackouts.”

Apple increases US subscription prices for Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple One bundle • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 24, 2022Posted in Apple, apple music, apple one, apple tv, Apps, Media & Entertainment, streaming serviceNo Comments

Today marks another blow to subscribers and their wallets. Apple increased the subscription prices for Apple TV+, Apple Music and the Apple One bundle in the U.S. — joining various other companies that have raised the prices of their subscription plans this year. Apple TV+ will increase by $2 monthly and $10 annually. Subscribers will be charged $6.99 per month or $69 per year. This will be the first time Apple TV+ has raised its subscription price since its launch, signifying a frustrating time for streaming subscribers who have seen price hikes left and right lately. Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+ and YouTube Premium’s family plan all experienced price increases this year. Apple Music is seeing a price hike of $1 for individual subscribers and $2 for families. The individual plan will now be $10.99 per month and the family plan will be $16.99 per month. In June, it was reported that Apple Music quietly increased the price of its student plan in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. Apple One is a subscription plan that bundles up to six Apple services like Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, iCloud+, Apple News+ and Apple Fitness+. The new prices for the individual plan, family plan and Premier plan are $16.95/month, $22.95/month and $32.95/month, respectively. An Apple spokesperson provided a statement to ZebethMedia: The subscription prices for Apple Music, Apple TV+, and Apple One will increase beginning today. The change to Apple Music is due to an increase in licensing costs, and in turn, artists and songwriters will earn more for the streaming of their music. We also continue to add innovative features that make Apple Music the world’s best listening experience. We introduced Apple TV+ at a very low price because we started with just a few shows and movies. Three years later, Apple TV+ is home to an extensive selection of award-winning and broadly acclaimed series, feature films, documentaries, and kids and family entertainment from the world’s most creative storytellers. Apple recently raised the prices for in-app purchases on the App Store in many countries across Asia and Europe.

Apple’s new Apple TV 4K gets a performance upgrade and lower price • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 18, 2022Posted in Apple, apple tv, HardwareNo Comments

Apple announced the newest Apple TV 4K today, featuring a lower price, better performance, and more storage. Plus, the A15 Bionic chip delivers up to 50% more CPU performance and 30% more GPU performance than the previous model. It also has HDR10+ and Dolby Vision support for better video quality. The new ‌Apple TV‌ 4K will become available to purchase on November 4 and consumers will get an updated ‌Siri‌ remote with a USB-C port for charging. There are two configurations that consumers can choose from– Apple TV 4K (Wi-Fi) and Apple TV 4K (Wi-Fi + Ethernet). The first option, Apple TV 4K (Wi-Fi), will be available at a new, lower price of $129 and will come with 64GB of storage. The more premium model will have 128GB of storage, Gigabit Ethernet, and Thread networking. The new starting price is a far better value than last year’s $179 model, which only had 32GB of storage. “Apple TV 4K is the ultimate way for Apple users to enjoy their favorite entertainment on the biggest screen in the home, and now it is more powerful than ever,” said Bob Borchers, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing, in a statement. “The new Apple TV 4K is unlike anything else out there, given its seamless connection to other Apple devices, ease of use, and access to amazing Apple content.”

Apple brings more of its services, including iCloud and Apple Music, to Microsoft platforms • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 12, 2022Posted in Apple, apple music, apple tv, Apps, Media & Entertainment, Microsoft, windows 11, xboxNo Comments

During a Surface-focused event this morning, Microsoft announced that it’s integrating Apple’s iCloud storage service with the Photos app in Windows 11. After installing the iCloud for Windows app from the Microsoft Store and choosing to sync iCloud, iPhone users with Windows devices will be able to see their iPhone photos and videos within Photos. Windows users participating in Microsoft’s Windows Insiders program can get the latest iCloud for Windows app, which enables the integration, starting today. “For the last few years, Windows customers who have Android phones have experienced that promise with integration across messaging, calling and photos directly to their Windows PC, bringing the two most important devices in their lives closer together,” CNET quoted Microsoft as saying. “We’re making it easier than ever for customers to access their iPhone photos and the entertainment they love from Apple on their Xbox and Windows devices.” An early look at iCloud integration in Windows 11. In a related development, Apple announced that it’s bringing first-party streaming services including Apple Music and Apple TV for more Microsoft platforms. Apple Music will come to Xbox consoles starting today, and Apple Music and the Apple TV app will launch on Windows sometime next year. The new Apple service tie-ins on Windows and Xbox follow the launch of Apple TV on Xbox consoles nearly two years ago. It’s been a long time coming, but hybrid Windows-iOS households will no doubt appreciate the tighter integration.

Apple TV+’s ‘Ted Lasso’ partners with Bumble to give users a blind-dating experience • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 11, 2022Posted in apple tv, Apps, bumble, dating app, Social, Ted LassoNo Comments

In the Apple TV+ series “Ted Lasso,” characters Rebecca Welton (Hannah Waddingham) and Sam Obisanya (Toheeb Jimoh) download Bantr, a fictional dating app where users can’t see each other’s photos. Bumble, the women-focused dating app, has now partnered with “Ted Lasso” to bring the experience of Bantr to its users. On Thursday, October 13, Bumble is launching a weekly “Bantr Live” experience, which mimics blind dating by having the user connect via chat without seeing what the potential match looks like. “The premise of Bantr is a dating experience many of our members have expressed interest in over the years. Bantr Live enables our community to connect with someone unexpectedly and learn more about a person before seeing them. We look forward to people on Bumble having fun with Bantr Live and connecting and dating in a new and exciting way,” said Olivia Yu, Global VP of Partnerships, Bumble, in a statement. Every Thursday at 7 p.m. local time, users can RSVP to the weekly event in Bumble’s Date Mode within the app. Bumble will have a reminder on screen with a countdown, so users know when Bantr Live kicks off. Once a user joins, they are randomly paired with someone and have three minutes to direct message a potential match. If things go well, users can choose to match, see each other’s photos and continue the conversation in the app. Bantr Live will be available to Bumble users for free in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and Australia. The experience will last until the end of the year. Also, as part of the partnership, Bumble users can redeem a two-month subscription to Apple TV+. Earlier this month, ZebethMedia reported Bumble’s newest blind date feature, which was quietly tested in the U.K. Now we know that this feature is called Bantr Live. The feature competes with Tinder’s “Blind Date” feature, an anonymous chat experience, and its speed dating-like feature “Fast Chat,” which lets users connect before matching. As previously announced, characters from the Emmy-winning series are featured in the newly launched EA Sports video game FIFA 23. Ted Lasso, Coach Beard, Sam Obisanya, Jamie Tartt, Dani Rojas, Roy Kent and Isaac McAdoo appear in the game.