With pre-orders scheduled to begin on Friday for the Apple Vision Pro mixed reality headset, one major streaming video service has decided to bypass offering its app for owners of the $3,499 device.
Bloomberg (via Yahoo) reports that Netflix has not only declined to make an app specifically for the Vision Pro, it will not allow its iPad app to work on the headset as well. In a statement, a Netflix spokesperson said:
Our members will be able to enjoy Netflix on the web browser on the Vision Pro, similar to how our members can enjoy Netflix on Macs.
There"s no word on why Netflix has declined to offer a direct app for the Vision Pro. There"s some speculation that Netflix does not want to offer an app because Apple has its own competing streaming service, Apple TV+. The article points out there is a Netflix app available for Meta"s Quest VR headset, but adds that the app has not been updated in some time.
This rather public dismissal of the Apple Vision Pro by Netflix comes after Apple posted a press release earlier this week promoting the use of the headset as an advanced entertainment content product. That includes using the Apple TV app with what the company calls the "Cinema Environment". Owners will be able to watch movies and TV shows via the Apple TV app as if they are in a movie theater, stating, "Users can even choose their favorite seat from the floor or balcony, and the front, middle, or back row."
Other major streaming services will be offering apps that will run on the Apple Vision Pro. They include Disney+, ESPN+, Max, Discovery+, Amazon Prime Video, Paramount+, Peacock, Pluto TV, Tubi, Fubo and more.
In fact, Disney+ will offer something extra for Vision Pro users. Apple states:
With Disney+, subscribers can watch thousands of TV shows and films from four iconic environments with vivid details: the Disney+ Theater, inspired by the historic El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood; the Scare Floor from Pixar’s Monsters Inc.; Marvel’s Avengers Tower overlooking downtown Manhattan; and the cockpit of Luke Skywalker’s landspeeder, facing a binary sunset on the planet Tatooine from the Star Wars galaxy.
The headset will also support viewing over 150 movies in 3D for the February 2 launch, with some available to purchase or rent, and others available via streaming services.