Apple is building a live TV advertising network to prepare for streaming services for Major League Soccer (English: Major League Soccer, abbreviated: MLS) games. As part of the deal with MLS, Apple has agreed to expand its advertising.
In June this year, Apple announced a 10-year partnership with Major League Soccer, and starting in 2023, all games will be streamed through the Apple TV app. Apple is now in discussions with advertising partners and MLS sponsors about ads to run in games and related shows.
All three Apple TV subscription tiers will have ads, including dedicated plans, premium TV+ subscriptions, and free TV apps.
Bloomberg said the live TV ads are part of Apple's aggressive push into advertising. Apple recently added new ads to the App Store Today tab and individual app pages, a move that was unpopular with developers because of some of the types of ads Apple chose to display.
Apple is also working on a plan to add search ads to the Apple Maps app on the iPhone starting next year, which will show up when users search for content. Apple is also exploring advertising for other apps and services, Bloomberg said.
Currently, Apple's advertising business generates about $4 billion (about 29.24 billion yuan) in annual revenue, but the company aims to push it to at least $10 billion (about 73.1 billion yuan) per year.