> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://spyglass.org/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Apple Lives Long Enough to Become the Ad Villain - URL: https://spyglass.org/apple-push-ads/ - Published: 2025-06-25T09:45:58.000Z - Updated: 2025-07-23T14:37:52.000Z - Description: Apple pushes too far in their need for 'F1' to be a hit... - Author: M.G. Siegler - Tags: advertising, apple, film, f1, entertainment, tech, tim cook, #nodate Look Apple, we get it. You really, really, really, really want *F1* to be a hit. And after a series of feature film flops, you really *need* it to be to maintain [any level of credibility](https://spyglass.org/apple-hollywood-seppuku/) in the space.[1](#one) The Apple TV+ shows have been, for the most part, [great](https://spyglass.org/its-not-tv-its-apple-tv-plus/). The movies, [pretty](https://spyglass.org/the-fountain-of-youth-apple-tv-meh/) [much](https://spyglass.org/the-gorge-apple-tv/) [the](https://spyglass.org/apple-wolfs-review/) [opposite](https://spyglass.org/fly-me-to-the-moon-apple/). That's obviously somewhat subjective, but it also matters for things like word-of-mouth. And that matters more than it normally would for Apple's movies because [they've inexplicably been so bad at marketing them](https://spyglass.org/apple-tv-plus-strategy/). Apple! Bad at marketing! I know! Movie marketing, as it turns out, is a different beast than iPhone marketing. (And [even there](https://spyglass.org/crush-with-i-liner/), Apple has been [stumbling of late](https://www.theverge.com/news/691113/apple-pulling-ads-parent-presentation?ref=spyglass.org).) So they've clearly gone back to the drawing board for *F1*. WWDC was essentially a giant ad for the film.[2](#two) I'm not sure how scalable that marketing is, but it allowed them to piggyback on [the news](https://spyglass.org/apple-wwdc-25-podcast/) ([and non-news](https://spyglass.org/liquid-glasslighting/)) out of the event. And now they're trying something else. From [Sarah Perez at *TechCrunch*](https://techcrunch.com/2025/06/24/iphone-customers-upset-by-apple-wallet-ad-pushing-f1-movie/?ref=spyglass.org): > Apple customers aren’t thrilled they’re getting an ad from the Apple Wallet app promoting the tech giant’s original film “F1 the Movie.” [Across](https://x.com/ParkerOrtolani/status/1937551035825807545?ref=spyglass.org) [social](https://www.reddit.com/r/AppleWallet/comments/1ljbjrs/how%5Fdo%5Fi%5Fturn%5Fthis%5Foff?ref=spyglass.org) [media](https://www.reddit.com/r/ios/comments/1ljd94e/disable%5Ffandango%5Fad%5Ffrom%5Fapple%5Fpay/?ref=spyglass.org), iPhone owners are complaining that their Wallet app sent out a push notification offering a $10 discount at Fandango for anyone buying two or more tickets to the film. Yes, Apple pushed an ad to every iPhone user.[3](#three) Millions and millions and millions of people got served an ad all at once. From Apple. Promoting an Apple movie. And promoting Apple Pay (and their partner Fandango). From the Wallet app. This is not the first time Apple has dabbled in promotion for Apple Pay and their partners, of course. But it is the first time they're hitting this trifecta: using their device to push their service *and their movie*. It's a bit much. But it's also just a push notification (and a notice in the Wallet app), you can just shoo it away, right? Sure, but there's also clearly a reason why this backlash keeps bubbling up. [As I wrote last night](https://x.com/mgsiegler/status/1937604365541417249?ref=spyglass.org) (referencing [the most famous line](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8WfRcnF4iZI&ref=spyglass.org) [written by Jonathan Nolan](https://spyglass.org/jonathan-nolan-fallout/)): **You either die ranting against inserting ads or live long enough to start inserting ads.** [Warner Crocker made a similar point](https://warnercrocker.com/2025/06/24/is-apples-f1-push-ad-enshittification-or-just-shitty/?ref=spyglass.org) in highlighting what's going on here: > My grandfather used to say that “a weed is anything that grows where you don’t want it to.” Most of today’s advertising certainly feels weed like. And it keeps getting worse, especially when pushed at us from sources we don’t expect it from. Amazon we expect this from. Apple not so much. As he notes, there's nothing inherently wrong with advertising itself. In the best cases, it can actually be useful or even a form of art. The problem is the old "when you give a mouse a cookie" parable. You start to make some money and you keep going. But Apple has a different problem which is actually tied to another one of the problems that they've had of late. Apple has spent the past couple of decades railing against ad-based business models. And now, well, they're doing ads. Granted, it's to sell their own products. But again, they're doing ads outside of this as well. With Apple Pay. [With Apple News](https://spyglass.org/apples-ad-ramp/). Perhaps some day [with Apple Maps](https://mgs.blog/apple-to-start-injecting-more-ads-into-your-iphone-c47339eec09a?ref=spyglass.org). Given [how vital](https://spyglass.org/apple-antitrust-fight/) the 'Services' business is now to Apple's overall growth story, I'd bet a lot of money [we're going to see this continuing to ramp](https://spyglass.org/apple-adds-apple-ads/). Apple must be looking at the businesses Amazon and Netflix [have now built](https://spyglass.org/netflix-ads/) from scratch here with revenue envy. But again, the problem is their previous rhetoric against this general business. One imagines that they'll try to use the "intrusive" and "personal data" distinction, but those are semantic lines that will fade eventually. If Apple does indeed keep pushing more into ads, they'll also keep doing things to make those ads more effective. They already failed in the space once with '[iAd](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IAd?ref=spyglass.org)', and much as with *F1* itself, they can't afford to fail again. If and when Tim Cook is [no longer CEO](https://spyglass.org/apple-succession-ternus-cook/), that could be the perfect timing to fully revisit previously precious stances... For now, we just have the scent of hypocrisy and the appearance of greed with these ads. Again, I'm not sure it's the latter – I think they just really, really, *really* want and need *F1* to be a hit and are pulling out every advertising stop that they can, including on their own properties. But it's no less hypocritical. And it doesn't help that it reminds people of when Apple [automatically shoved a U2 album](https://fortune.com/2014/10/09/81-million-people-u2-album-apple/?ref=spyglass.org) into everyone's iPhone. As a wise old man (not Bono) once said – to keep the movies references going – ["with great power, comes great responsibility."](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guuYU74wU70&ref=spyglass.org) People pay a lot of money for these devices from Apple. And part of the implicit bargain is that they won't have adware or ads themselves shoved at them in every direction. Again, that's been morphing over time. Businesses are gonna business. **One more thing:** as alluded to above, my mind is drawn elsewhere with this story as well. Apple spent years railing against "vaporware" being touted by their competition and then [did the same thing](https://spyglass.org/apple-is-the-navy/) last WWDC with Apple Intelligence. Yes, they take issue with [that categorization](https://daringfireball.net/2025/03/something%5Fis%5Frotten%5Fin%5Fthe%5Fstate%5Fof%5Fcupertino?ref=spyglass.org), which is [undoubtedly why](https://spyglass.org/spyglasslighting/) they [iced out John Gruber at WWDC this year](https://spyglass.org/apple-you-cowards/). But he's [hardly the only one saying it](https://www.economist.com/business/2025/06/08/can-tim-cook-stop-apple-going-the-same-way-as-nokia?ref=spyglass.org). And for good reason. Again, Apple is trying to fall back on semantics, but if you have to do that, you've already lost. Vaporware is vaporware until you ship it. Apple users and enthusiasts have been trained over the years to believe that Apple would never dabble in such things. And now they have. Just as we've been taught that Apple would never stoop to intrusive ads in their user experience. And now they have. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/2025/06/Apple-Wallet-Ads.jpg) via [**MacRumors*](https://www.macrumors.com/2025/06/24/apple-wallet-notification-f1-movie-ad/?ref=spyglass.org) --- **Update June 26, 2025**: One thing I meant to include in the above and which [Wesley Hilliard reminds me today](https://me.dm/@HilliTech@techhub.social/114746602000064349?ref=spyglass.org): there's apparently a setting in iOS 26 to turn such promotional push notifications off. Granted, we're only on the second dev build of that OS and there is no such mechanism in the current builds of iOS so yeah, pretty much everyone got this. But still, Apple is at least giving us an off-ramp eventually, it seems (though yes, they'll be on by default). --- **Update June 26, 2025**: Some further thoughts on the prospects for *F1*... [Apple’s Pitt StopThe drive to survive the theatrical box office starts anew…![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/icon/Spyglass-Rings---Multi-1326.png)SpyglassM.G. Siegler![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/thumbnail/f1-movie_review_1750832557353_1750832562273-3.jpg)](https://spyglass.org/apple-f1-box-office/) --- **Update June 29\. 2025**: And yet more thoughts after a successful first weekend... [Apple Finally Has a Hit Movie, But at What Cost?I mean that both literally and figuratively as ‘F1’ was beyond expensive to make and beyond in-your-face to market![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/icon/Spyglass-Rings---Multi-1327.png)SpyglassM.G. Siegler![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/thumbnail/CEX6XFSWNZLNFHDIVMV3YJEEFQ-1.jpeg)](https://spyglass.org/apple-f1-box-office-not-so-fast/) --- 👇 ****Previously, on Spyglass...** [Apple Adds ‘Apple Ads’It’s inevitable that Apple pushes more fully into advertising eventually…![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/icon/Spyglass-Rings---Multi-1300.png)SpyglassM.G. Siegler![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/thumbnail/mgs22_a_newspaper_advertisement_with_a_big_Apple_logo_on_it_-_31ba7e0c-e2e9-4bee-b962-8caec9e81a91_1-1-1.png)](https://spyglass.org/apple-adds-apple-ads/) [Liquid GlasslightingThere are no issues with AI within Apple, why do you ask?![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/icon/Spyglass-Rings---Multi-1301.png)SpyglassM.G. Siegler![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/thumbnail/mgs22_a_gaslight_with_the_apple_logo_--ar_169_--v_7_bda60a1d-710e-4aa9-8ff5-44da25df4173_1-2.png)](https://spyglass.org/spyglasslighting/) [The Apple Car May Have Flopped, Apple’s Car Movie Should NotIt’s just a teaser trailer, but ‘F1’ looks great.![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/icon/Spyglass-Rings---Multi-1302.png)SpyglassM.G. Siegler![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/thumbnail/Screenshot-2024-07-07-at-9.28.22-PM-1-1.png)](https://spyglass.org/f1-apple/) --- 1 For the record, I do think *F1* will end up being Apple's first hit movie — [which I've been saying from the get-go](https://spyglass.org/f1-apple/) – but beyond the advertising, that's mostly because by most accounts so far, it's actually good. 2 Don't forget [the Tim Cook magazine photoshoot](https://spiral.spyglass.org/i/166065880/tim-cook-reveals-apples-vision-for-movies-and-tv?ref=spyglass.org) as well for the film. So hot right now. 3 Well, at least those in the US – though I got it as well in the UK (though that may be because my account is still tied to my US account).