During yesterday's earnings call, the company admitted that there is some tough competition out there and that it needs to step up. Content just isn't hitting the mark as revenue and subscriber growth slows.
This need for improvement is acknowledged by the company. Ted Sarandos, Co-Chief Executive Officer and Chief Content Officer, said, "We have to compete, and we have to continue to improve on the core service, which is making TV series."
It wasn't enough to win an Oscar, because movies with big names like Red Notice, starring Gal Gadot, Ryan Reynolds, and the Rock Johnson have flashy action sequences and expensive-looking props. Red Notice cost $200 million to make and only has a 36% on the Tomatoes. It is one of the most expensive movies to date.
If they don't really need to spend so much on content, quality isn't synonymous with expensive.
It costs less than $10 million to make Apple TV+. If a simple and sweet film can win Best Picture without fancy casts and movie sets, then that is something to note. They are not going to be able to keep up with their competitors if they continue to focus on A-List cast members instead of quality storylines and content.
On the earnings call, Sarandos acknowledged that it doesn't have enough hits coming often enough.
He said that they were not happy with the top-line subscriber growth. We are definitely feeling a heightened level of competition in those markets of users.
It could be overambitious to push out hits every month, even for a veteran.
We aren't quite sure if this will work out the way they hope, as the company will continue to invest in quality content and bring more variety to the table. The benefit of pacing shows is to keep users tuning in, instead of just leaving.
Shonda Rhimes was a great decision for the streaming service, but it could have helped if it was done more slowly.
There are other decisions that didn't work out as planned.
Is it cake was a flop, receiving a low audience score of 41%. The streamer latched on to a meme of cake resembling objects and rolled with it in hopes of bringing in more subscribers. The show is too similar to other wild and experimental cooking titles.
Love is Blind was a show that did well in the context of online dating, with over a billion minutes of viewing time. The Circle, Too Hot to Handle, and Love on the Spectrum are just a few of the dating shows that are available on the internet. The show flopped, with an audience score of 12%.
The point is, just because one show works doesn't mean subscribers need others like it. The model of programming feels too reliant on the decision-making process. Quality content needs a human touch.
Maybe they could rise again if the company focused more on acquiring carefullycurated titles instead of throwing money at big names and the next big trend.
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