Apple TV+ changes its name

Apple TV+, the streaming service, is getting a new name.

It will now be known as simply Apple TV, the company announced in a quiet rebrand.

That is the same name as Apple’s streaming puck, which plugs into TV and offers apps and games. That puck can stream from Apple’s own catalogue but also rivals such as Netflix and Disney+.

Apple announced the change in a press release about its F1 film coming to the streaming service in December.

“Apple TV‌+ is now simply ‌Apple TV‌, with a vibrant new identity,” the company said in its announcement. But, at the time of publication, Apple was still using the old name on its website and no new identity was shown.

The same announcement gave a hint at the variety of different products that are now operating under the Apple TV name. Apple TV is available on the Apple TV app in over 100 countries and regions, on over 1 billion screens, including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV,” it reads, before listing the other platforms the service is available for.

In total, there are now three different products with the Apple TV name. As well as the streaming service and the physical puck, Apple also offers an Apple TV app for its platforms which offers films and TV from both its own streaming platform and others.

Apple gave no indication that it would change the name of any of those other Apple TV products, or that it was planning to discontinue any of them.

Apple offers a host of different online services, many of which continue to use the plus sign in their name. Fitness+ and News+ do not appear to be changing their branding, for instance.

But those brands with the plus sign are in the minority. On its website, Apple also lists Apple Music and Apple Arcade, for instance, both of which require a monthly subscription fee but have never used the plus sign in their name.