When Apple executive Eddie Cue admitted that the company is developing a slate of original TV shows during an interview at the South by Southwest event in Austin, it was merely an admission of something most followers of the company already knew. Apple is spending one billion dollars to launch the project.

This week there’s a published report that the first shows will debut a year from now, March 2019. How they will be distributed is still a matter of speculation, though there are surely strong hints on how it may play out. So Apple’s first efforts at original shows, “Carpool Karaoke” and “Planet of the Apps,” were of modest entertainment value, to put it mildly. But they were certainly proofs of concept.

Apple was clearly convinced, and a launch date a year hence makes sense because quality shows don’t appear magically. There is usually a long gestation process to get even to the first or pilot episode. It’s not just the “Series Bible,” but such chores as script development, set development, costume design and, of course, hiring performers. It can take months or years to complete, so even if the first TV shows debut next year, it probably won’t be all of them.

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This article was posted on Monday, March 26th, 2018 at 12:00 AM and is filed under News and tagged with: Apple, Carpool Karaoke, Eddie Cue, Planet of the Apps, South by Southwest.