Netflix CEO Reed Hastings recently discussed what he thinks about the upcoming launch of new rivals Apple TV+ and Disney+, as well as Netflix's plans to retain subscriber interest after their launches (via Variety). According to Hastings, "it's a whole new world starting in November," referring to the November 1 launch of ‌Apple TV‌+ and November 12 launch of Disney+.

apple tv plus promo image
The CEO said that it will be "tough competition" for Netflix, but the company will continue on course with its core strategy of offering bingeable TV shows and movies. This means that Netflix isn't planning on trialing drastically different content types, like Amazon Prime Video is with live sports, or experimenting with different release models.

“While we’ve been competing with many people in the last decade, it’s a whole new world starting in November…between Apple launching and Disney launching, and of course Amazon’s ramping up,” said Hastings, who also cited NBCUniversal’s coming Peacock service. “It’ll be tough competition. Direct-to-consumer [customers] will have a lot of choice.”

There are now numerous standalone streaming services that vie for customer attention, including Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Now, the upcoming HBO Max, CBS All Access, the upcoming NBC Peacock, Shudder, and many more.

‌Apple TV‌+ will launch November 1 with a handful of exclusive TV shows, including "The Morning Show," "Dickinson," "See," and "For All Mankind." Apple is making the service free for a full year for anyone who purchases an iPhone, iPad, ‌Apple TV‌, iPod Touch, or Mac. ‌Apple TV‌+ will cost $4.99/month otherwise.

Disney+ will launch November 12 with a huge back catalog of Disney films and tv shows, divided among the company's major brands: Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, and National Geographic. To entice early adopters, Disney even offered a sign-up deal that got you three years of the streaming service for the price of two. This brought the price of the service to just under $4/month, compared to its $6.99/month regular price tag.

Amid the emergence of so many new streaming services, Hastings pointed out that production costs for streaming-based TV shows would rise, thanks to companies like Apple and Disney now also purchasing valuable production space in highly sought after areas. According to Hastings, "Someday 'The Crown' will look like a bargain," referring to its popular historical drama series that might not be the most expensive show ever made, but is among the most expensive to be produced by Netflix.

Top Rated Comments

clayj Avatar
72 months ago
Um, yeah. I'm canceling my Netflix subscription as soon as I sign up for Disney+.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Porco Avatar
72 months ago
Hey Netflix, with these new threats to your business, now would be a really good time to stop imposing unremovable ratings banners, forced-minimisation of content as soon as the credits start and the super-irritating video previews of content when browsing that you can't turn off.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Unity451 Avatar
72 months ago

According to Hastings, "it's a whole new world starting in November,"
Interesting choice of words, Mr. Hastings.

Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Andronicus Avatar
72 months ago
Well one way to compete is to have better integration with Apple TV. How come I can’t continue watching Netflix from Apple TV home screen like I can Hulu and other streaming services? Get it together Mr. Hastings!
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kylelerner Avatar
72 months ago
This is great. This will only bring higher-quality content.

Although the annoyance and confusion of having several subscriptions is a bummer.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
daftpunker909 Avatar
72 months ago
I'm definitely signing up for Disney+ (already signed up for the 3 year deal), but AppleTV+ content looks super un-interesting to me and is not swaying me at all. My ideal package is currently Amazon Prime, Netflix, HBO, and Disney+ for ~$40

I think Disney+ is much bigger competition than AppleTV+ as of now
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
maxresdefault

Apple Releases iOS 18.4 With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music, New Emoji and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:03 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, the fourth major updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating system updates that came out last year. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 come two months after Apple released iOS 18.3 and iPadOS 18.3. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to...
top stories 2025 03 29

Top Stories: WWDC 2025 Announced, iPhone 17 Pro and iOS 19 Rumors, and More

Saturday March 29, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent. A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...
Magic Mouse Green

What to Expect From the Magic Mouse 3

Saturday March 29, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Apple is reportedly working on a new Magic Mouse. Below, we recap what to expect. The two key rumors for the Magic Mouse 3 so far include a relocated charging port, along with a more ergonomic design. It was briefly rumored that the Magic Mouse 3 would also feature voice control, but that was misinterpreted information. Relocated Charging Port While the Magic Mouse switched from...
iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Expected Next Week - Here Are the Release Notes

Friday March 28, 2025 2:01 pm PDT by
With the second release candidate of iOS 18.4 that Apple seeded out today, the company finally provided us with release notes that give a full rundown on what to expect. There's an Apple Vision Pro app, new Apple Intelligence features for notifications and additional language support, plus an Apple News Food feature for Apple News+ subscribers, and several updates that should improve the...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Six Things to Know About Apple's Upcoming Foldable iPhone

Friday March 28, 2025 3:54 pm PDT by
We've been hearing rumors about a foldable iPhone for almost a decade now, but it looks like we might finally see the device come to fruition in 2026. We're going to be waiting many more months for the foldable iPhone, but so far we're hearing good things. Apple wants to make it creaseless. It's taken Apple multiple years to design a foldable iPhone that it's satisfied with because Apple ...
iOS 19 visionOS UI Elements

Apple Codename Provides Clue About iOS 19's Rumored New Design

Sunday March 30, 2025 6:40 am PDT by
Multiple sources have claimed that iOS 19 will introduce a new design with more translucent buttons, menus, notification banners, and more, and there is now another clue that points towards this glass-like appearance. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said the new design project is codenamed "Solarium" internally. A solarium is a room with glass walls that allow in plenty of sunlight, so this...
macOS Sequoia Feature

Apple Releases macOS Sequoia 15.4 With Mail Categorization and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.4, the fourth major update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that launched in September. macOS Sequoia 15.4 comes two months after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.3. Mac users can download the ‌‌macOS Sequoia‌‌ update through the Software Update section of System Settings. It is available for free on all Macs able to run macOS 15. With...