The Transport Guy: Apple is making TV shows to make you buy more stuff (AAPL)

Steve Kovach July 26, 2016 at 01:27PM

Here's a crazy one: 

Why is Apple making two reality TV shows?

The answer: To make you want to buy more stuff.

On Tuesday, Apple said it'll adapt "Carpool Karoake," the popular celebrity-filled lip syncing segment from James Corden's "Late Late Show" on CBS, into its own spinoff  series. (Corden won't host.)

And earlier this month, Apple said it's making a reality show that chronicles app developers in their quest to build the next megahit for the iPhone. The show will be called "Planet of the Apps." (Rapper Will.i.am will host, for some inexplicable reason.)

Notice a common thread between those two projects?

Both are designed to entice you to buy more digital products from Apple, which the company hopes will be its next big area of growth as it sees declines in its magical moneymaking iPhone business for the first time in history.

Services, which include apps, music, cloud storage and more, appear to be growing nicely, and Apple has been coming up with new ways to squeeze more money out of you after you buy that $650 iPhone.

Like your iPhone? Load it up with music from iTunes! Oh, and here's a free show with celebrities singing some popular songs to convince you. And maybe some of those songs will be an exclusive to Apple Music. Nice.

Like your iPhone? Load it up with apps from the App Store! Oh, and here's a free TV show hosted by a celebrity rapper talking about some of the coolest apps everyone will be downloading if they can pull themselves away from "Pokémon GO." Buy! Buy! Buy!

These shows don't mean Apple is getting into the content business a la Netflix and Amazon, at least not yet. For now, the strategy seems to be to make shows that complement digital products it already sells and entice you to buy them. Clever.

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Apple is making TV shows to make you buy more stuff (AAPL) from Business Insider: Steve Kovach