MGM Held Talks With Apple and Netflix to Gauge Interest in Acquisition - MacRumors
Skip to Content

MGM Held Talks With Apple and Netflix to Gauge Interest in Acquisition

MGM held preliminary talks with Apple, Netflix, and other large media companies to gauge their interest in a possible acquisition, reports CNBC.

The report confirms another report from The Wall Street Journal last month that suggested Apple was exploring deals for MGM Holdings content, though the talks had "yet to reach an advanced stage."

mgm
A deal with MGM would potentially offer Apple a huge catalog of content to add to Apple TV Plus. MGM owns the James Bond franchise and is responsible for multiple hit TV shows like "The Handmaid's Tale," which currently airs on Hulu. It also owns Epix and the rights to movies like "Rocky" and "Mad Max."

There's no word on when and if MGM and Apple might reach some kind of deal, and all companies declined to comment on the ongoing talks.

Right now, Apple is behind other streaming media services. Apple TV+ features a handful of original Apple shows, like "The Morning Show," "For All Mankind," "Servant," and "See." Some of the shows have been nominated for awards and have proven popular, but Apple has a long way to go to be able to compete with the larger catalogs available from Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+.

Popular Stories

New Apple TV Logo

Apple TV Just Updated Its Selection of 'Bonus' Movies

Thursday October 1, 2026 9:07 am PDT by
Starting today, the Apple TV streaming service is offering a new selection of "bonus" movies in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., and some other countries. While competitors like Netflix offer an extensive catalog of movies from various studios, Apple TV primarily offers its own original films produced by Apple. Over the past few years, however, Apple has offered a "Great Movies Now on Apple TV"...
iPhone 18 Pro Burgundy

iPhone 18 Pro Makes the Starting Lineup for Apple TV's Dodgers vs. Giants Broadcast

Thursday September 17, 2026 8:10 am PDT by
Apple TV's broadcast of the Los Angeles Dodgers vs. San Francisco Giants game this Friday will incorporate the brand new iPhone 18 Pro. More than a dozen iPhone 18 Pro devices will be placed throughout Dodger Stadium during the game, according to Apple. The devices will capture live gameplay from unique vantage points and scenes from around the ballpark, including batting practice, player...
Apple TV Color

'Widow's Bay' Leads Apple TV to Record 29 Emmy Wins

Tuesday September 15, 2026 5:34 am PDT by
Apple TV shows swept the board at the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards last night as the streaming service received 29 wins overall to become the most awarded network of the year. It was Apple TV's best-ever Emmy Awards haul, thanks to the likes of Widow's Bay, Pluribus, Slow Horses, Margo's Got Money Troubles, Palm Royale, and Mr. Scorsese. Widow's Bay was the most awarded show of the night,...

Top Rated Comments

87 months ago
I hope who ever buys it relaunches the Stargate franchise.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cmaier Avatar
87 months ago

You think Apple can afford Disney? Doubtful. It’d be nice to see Apple get some back catalog. That’s what they are missing. Nothing to do after originals are done.
Disney market cap is only 245 billion? Apple would only need half. They could theoretically do it with cash, no?
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
69Mustang Avatar
87 months ago

Just buy disney already and call it a day..all this ***** footing around is getting old.
This is getting old. By this I mean that old "Apple should just buy..." adage. Some think of Apple's shrunken and steadily shrinking cash hoard as if it's disposable income like an individual would have. It is not. Using @cmaier estimation of Disney's market cap at $245B and his guestimate of half of that would get the job done, his question was Apple could do it with cash. That answer is no. Apple has been spending that money on stock repurchases (smarter use of funds than buying Disney imo). As of late summer 2019 Alphabet had more cash than Apple.

Continuing to play with the cash idea, a hypothetical Disney acquisition would be more than 40X larger than the largest acquisition Apple has ever done (Beats at $3B). Bad idea imo. Disney comes with astronomical annual overhead. Most of their revenue comes from their media networks, not studio entertainment. Disney is a hydra that Apple should avoid imo. Apple's better play is to buy what they consider to be wheat (content) and stay away from the chaff that is business interests that don't align with theirs. A lot of Disney does not align with Apple.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JosephAW Avatar
87 months ago
If this happens we could see Brad Wright revive Stargate.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ipedro Avatar
87 months ago
MGM would be great but Apple should be looking at a top tier property. Disney has Marvel and Star Wars, Warner owns DC Comics (Batman, Joker, Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman); Apple should go all in and acquire ViacomCBS which would give them Star Trek. MGM's James Bond is nice to have but I don't think it's in the same realm as Star Wars, Star Trek, Marvel and DC Comics.

Apple could use AppleTV+ as a platform to expand the Star Trek universe on TV. Star Trek: Discovery and Picard are both doing incredibly well.

CBS would also give Apple a newsroom which would fill in an important component of TV watching. CBSN is already nicely integrated in the online culture and could retain its own news brand remain at arm's length to keep Apple out of the news business directly. Then again, Apple News already has curation so maybe CBS News and Apple News could merge in a way.

CBS also comes with a Sports division, the final important leg in TV programming. CBS owns broadcasting rights for NFL games, NCAA and the PGA Golf Tour.

Aside from getting Star Trek, a CBS/Viacom would give Apple Paramount's entire movie library, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, the CW, CNET, ZDNet, Last.fm, and Search.com. The latter two would be invaluable additions for AppleMusic and a starting point for an Apple search engine.

ViacomCBS is worth $28B, only 7% of Apple's cash hoard. It's a no brainer. Tim Cook, go ahead and pull out your Apple Watch and ask them if they accept Apple Pay.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DEXTERITY Avatar
87 months ago
Just buy disney already and call it a day..all this ***** footing around is getting old.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Latest Stories
Apple to Report Q4 2026 Earnings on November 2
Apple to Report Q4 2026 Earnings on November 2
8 minutes ago
Three Years of 80% Charge Limits on iPhone: The Results
Three Years of 80% Charge Limits on iPhone: The Results
2 hours ago
macOS 27.2 Further Hints at MacBook With Touch-Enabled OLED Display
macOS 27.2 Further Hints at MacBook With Touch-Enabled OLED Display
3 hours ago
The 15 Best Apple Deals Under $200 for Prime Day
The 15 Best Apple Deals Under $200 for Prime Day
4 hours ago
AirPods Pro 3 and AirPods Max 2 Get Big Price Drops for Prime Day
AirPods Pro 3 and AirPods Max 2 Get Big Price Drops for Prime Day
5 hours ago
Apple Releases Second Public Betas of iOS 27.2 and macOS Golden Gate 27.2
Apple Releases Second Public Betas of iOS 27.2 and macOS Golden Gate 27.2
5 hours ago
'Crossy Road Rush' Launching Exclusively on Apple Arcade in November
'Crossy Road Rush' Launching Exclusively on Apple Arcade in November
5 hours ago
Apple Watch Series 9 vs. Series 12 Buyer's Guide: Is It Worth Upgrading?
Apple Watch Series 9 vs. Series 12 Buyer's Guide: Is It Worth Upgrading?
6 hours ago
Prime Day Savings: TVs, Headphones, Chargers, and Other Tech Accessories
Prime Day Savings: TVs, Headphones, Chargers, and Other Tech Accessories
6 hours ago
Apple TV 4K Rumored to Support Four HomePods for Surround Sound
Apple TV 4K Rumored to Support Four HomePods for Surround Sound
7 hours ago
iPhone 18 Pro and Duo Were Once Planned With 16GB RAM, Leaker Says
iPhone 18 Pro and Duo Were Once Planned With 16GB RAM, Leaker Says
8 hours ago
Apple's Entire Mac Lineup Gets Massive Discounts for Prime Day
Apple's Entire Mac Lineup Gets Massive Discounts for Prime Day
8 hours ago
Prime Day iPad Deals Include Low Prices on iPad Air, iPad Mini, and More
Prime Day iPad Deals Include Low Prices on iPad Air, iPad Mini, and More
8 hours ago
Apple's $634 Million Apple Watch Patent Bill Just Got Even Bigger
Apple's $634 Million Apple Watch Patent Bill Just Got Even Bigger
9 hours ago
Amazon Prime Big Deal Days Offers Major Discounts on AirPods, iPads, and Much More
Amazon Prime Big Deal Days Offers Major Discounts on AirPods, iPads, and Much More
4 hours ago
Microsoft OneDrive to Drop Support for These iPhone Models
Microsoft OneDrive to Drop Support for These iPhone Models
10 hours ago
HomePod Mini Waits Reach Eight Weeks Ahead of Rumored Refresh
HomePod Mini Waits Reach Eight Weeks Ahead of Rumored Refresh
10 hours ago
Apple Music Is Getting a New Logo
Apple Music Is Getting a New Logo
11 hours ago
Apple Quietly Boosts Email Feature for iCloud+ Subscribers
Apple Quietly Boosts Email Feature for iCloud+ Subscribers
11 hours ago
iOS 27.2 May Let You Hide Specific Suggested Actions in Messages
iOS 27.2 May Let You Hide Specific Suggested Actions in Messages
12 hours ago
Sources: Apple Planning Two Sets of Product Launches in October
Sources: Apple Planning Two Sets of Product Launches in October
19 hours ago
Apple Announces iPhone Duo Apps Can Now Be Submitted to App Store
Apple Announces iPhone Duo Apps Can Now Be Submitted to App Store
20 hours ago
macOS 27.2 Adds Touch Gestures Ahead of MacBook Ultra
macOS 27.2 Adds Touch Gestures Ahead of MacBook Ultra
1 day ago
Apple and AT&T Have Yet to Explain Cause of iPhone 18 Pro Max Issue
Apple and AT&T Have Yet to Explain Cause of iPhone 18 Pro Max Issue
1 day ago
tvOS 27.2 Code Hints at Apple Intelligence for New Apple TV
tvOS 27.2 Code Hints at Apple Intelligence for New Apple TV
1 day ago
Apple Seeds Third macOS Golden Gate 27.2 Beta to Developers
Apple Seeds Third macOS Golden Gate 27.2 Beta to Developers
1 day ago
Apple Releases Third watchOS 27.2, tvOS 27.2 and visionOS 27.2 Betas
Apple Releases Third watchOS 27.2, tvOS 27.2 and visionOS 27.2 Betas
1 day ago
Apple Releases Third iOS 27.2 Beta
Apple Releases Third iOS 27.2 Beta
1 day ago
Apple Cash Adds ID Check for Reloads, Teases Bank Funding
Apple Cash Adds ID Check for Reloads, Teases Bank Funding
1 day ago
Apple Configurator App Updated
Apple Configurator App Updated
1 day ago