Apple wants to get into the movie business, according to the latest rumours.
The firm is close to finalising a deal to acquire the rights to a feature-length animated film to bolster its upcoming video streaming service, sources say.
It’s unclear whether the movie, which is still a year from completion, will be exclusive to its rumoured Netflix-style streaming service, or whether it will receive a theatrical release as well.
Cartoon Saloon, the Irish animation studio behind the film, has received Academy Award nominations for all three of its previous efforts.
Streaming rivals Amazon and Netflix have both invested heavily in original films, with the latter paying $90 million (£67 million) for the Will Smith blockbuster ‘Bright’.
Kilkenny-based studio Cartoon Saloon received an Academy Award nomination in the Best Animated Feature for its film The Breadwinner earlier this year
The feature film, which is produced by Angelina Jolie, follows a young girl as she disguises herself as a boy to be able to provide for her family after her father is wrongly arrested
The deal is not finalised and could still fall through, according to anonymous sources speaking to Bloomberg.
However, the talks with Cartoon Saloon hint at a new level of ambition for Apple as it prepares to challenge Amazon Prime, YouTube and Netflix in the video streaming space.
Amazon and Netflix are investing heavily in original content for their respective streaming platforms, with the companies rumoured to have set aside $4.5 billion (£3.3 billion) and $8 billion (£6 billion) for their 2018 slates, respectively.
Netflix has enjoyed huge critical and commercial success with its original television shows, like ‘Orange Is The New Black’, ‘House Of Cards’, and ‘Queer Eye’.
Amazon recently announced plans to film a television series based on the ‘Lord Of The Rings’ trilogy by JRR Tolkien, after it beat out a bid from rival Netflix.
The rights to the series cost the studio $250 million (£188 million), when coupled with the five-season commitment signed as part of the deal, and the production expenses, is likely to make this adaptation the most expensive show of all time.
Some estimates place the total cost of the series north of $1 billion (£755 million).
Apple has already struck a number of deals for original television shows and documentaries.
The iPhone company has announced a remake of Steven Spielberg’s ‘Amazing Stories’ anthology series from the mid-80s, and an as-yet untitled drama series set in the world of morning television starring Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon.
Apple also bought the worldwide distribution rights for the Ed Sheeran documentary ‘Songwriter’ back in April for a ‘low to mid-seven figures’, according to Bloomberg.
Other potential film deals with Cartoon Saloon are also being mooted, sources have said.
Apple has long enjoyed a position as one of the biggest venders of television shows and movies through its popular iTunes Store, which is available to buy and rent across its devices.
Apple already enjoys a strong position within the entertainment industry thanks to the iTunes Store, which sells television episodes and feature films to customers around the world
However, the company has since started to fund its own television shows, like Carpool Karaoke, which are broadcast via its music streaming service, Apple Music.
Last year, Apple hired industry heavyweights Jamie Erlicht and Zack Van Amburg – the pair who helped Sony achieve commercial and critical success with shows like The Crown and Breaking Bad.
Erlicht and Van Amburg were given a war chest of $1 billion (£755 million) to spend in a year on original programming.
Apple has yet to reveal how it will distribute its original television shows, documentaries, and feature-length films.
The company has a dedicated steaming box, which connects to a TV via HDMI and brings a slew of video and music streaming services, and iPhone-style games.
Apple rolled-out a dedicated TV app to its Apple TV and iOS users in 2016.
The software aggregates content from a variety of video on-demand providers, including BBC iPlayer and ITV Hub, as well as purchases and rentals made via iTunes.
Apple uses machine learning to recommend shows based on your viewing habits, and your progress in a show – or individual episode – is synced in the cloud so you can move between devices.
Apple rolled-out its dedicated TV app to iPhone, iPad and Apple TV devices in 2016. The app aggregates content from a variety of video on-demand providers, including BBC iPlayer and ITV Hub, as well as purchases and rentals made from the iTunes Store
The company also has dedicated streaming hardware, Apple TV, which brings on-demand video and music services to customers’ television via a HDMI connection
The app could easily incorporate an in-house video on-demand service from Apple.
It’s unclear whether Apple plans to make its Netflix competitor available on rival platforms, like it has done with Apple Music on Android, or use the service to lure new customers to its ecosystem.
According to the latest rumours, Apple hopes to launch its first original shows next year.
Cartoon Saloon is based in Kilkenny, Ireland.
The studio has received three Academy Award-nominated animations for its feature-length films, ‘Secret of Kells’, ‘Song of the Sea’, and ‘The Breadwinner’.
The animation studio is also behind the Emmy-nominated series ‘Puffin Rock’, which is aimed at kindergarten-age children and streams globally on Netflix in more than 25 languages.