Apple to Expand Live TV Advertising for Major League Soccer Deal

Apple is building a live television ad network in preparation for streaming Major League Soccer games, reports Bloomberg. Apple has agreed to expand its advertising as part of its deal with MLS.

Back in June, Apple announced a 10-year partnership with Major League Soccer, which will see all matches streamed through the Apple TV app starting in 2023. Apple is now talking with advertising partners and MLS sponsors about ads that will air during the soccer games and related shows.

All three streaming tiers will have ads, including the dedicated package, paid TV+ subscriptions, and the free TV app.

Bloomberg says that ads for live TV are part of Apple's aggressive push into advertising. Apple recently added new ads to the App Store Today tab and to individual app pages, a move that has been unpopular with developers due to some of the ad types Apple has opted to show.

Apple is also working on a plan to add search ads to the Apple Maps app on iPhone starting next year, with these ads showing up alongside user searches for things like "gas" or "coffee." Bloomberg says that Apple is also exploring ads for other apps and services.

Apple's ad business generates around $4 billion annually at the current time, but the company is aiming to push that to at least $10 billion per year.