According to rumours swirling the net, Apple may be in talks to purchase Netflix in the near future. Business Insider notes how there is a 40% chance that Apple will acquire the streaming giant, a figure based off of new corporate tax reforms that were recently put in place by President Trump.
This tax cut, coupled alongside a new bill that allows companies to repatriate cash stored in overseas accounts without a major tax hit, will essentially give Apple a fighting chance at putting their money to good use. The California-based tech conglomerate has about $252 billion in cash stored internationally, which was previously barred from being brought into the US for business purposes. If Apple were to access these funds, they may use this fortune to purchase Netflix, which is estimated to be worth $87 billion USD.
Apple has been struggling to dominate the realm of original content, as the user count of Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime continues to skyrocket. However, the company has tapped Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon to star in their first scripted video series, giving their introduction into content creation a dose of Hollywood royalty.
However, according to business insiders, the acquisition seems unlikely at the moment, as Apple recently allocated $1 billion USD into financing the production of original content.
Neither Apple nor Netflix have addressed these rumours yet.
In other Apple news, the company has recently apologized for purposely slowing down the batteries on older devices, after receiving a barrage of criticism and a lawsuit. Apple has effectively slashed prices for battery replacements in order to appease customers who felt deceived by the forced obsolescence of older iPhones.