Apple's Vision Pro headset will go on sale in the early knockings of 2024 according to the company but there's one app that buyers won't be installing — a dedicated Vision Pro Netflix app.
That's according to a new report which claims that Apple's headset will have to make do with a retooled iPad app instead. Vision Pro has been confirmed to run iPad apps when required, and the report suggests that's exactly what Netflix is going to have people do.
The move means that anyone hoping to enjoy a VR-specific version of Netflix is going to be left out, but they'll at least be able to watch content even if it isn't built with the headset in mind.
A Netflix reality
This is all according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman who mentioned the streaming giant in his weekly Power On newsletter.
"I’m told that the company has no current plans to develop a native app for the Vision Pro," Gurman said. Of course, Netflix will still let its iPad app run on the headset unmodified.
Netflix isn't thought to be the only company set to take the easy route out, but competitor Disney Plus is set to be one that will put the work in. The same can also be expected of Apple TV Plus for obvious reasons, and Apple is already said to be working on special VR versions of content to get the most out of the headset when it ships.
Netflix isn’t developing a native app for the Vision Pro. They’ll instead offer their iPad app, unmodified - like many other developers. https://t.co/yHb3VRsLKvJuly 23, 2023
As for the rest of the App Store, pricing will determine how popular apps actually are among people who have just forked out $3,499 for the headset itself. Gurman suggests that pricing will be around $20 depending on the app.
"I wouldn’t be surprised if $20 is the new $1 for most Vision Pro apps," Gurman posits. "And we could see many of them costing between $50 and $250, especially in the graphic design or productivity categories." As for gaming, that's anyone's guess right now. "Games on the Vision Pro may even be priced closer to their console equivalents, somewhere in the range of $40 to $60, compared with much lower levels on the iPhone and iPad," Gurman offers.
With Apple's headset still potentially as far as 12 months out, at least developers will have plenty of time to get their apps ready.
