In a relationship that could only be defined as awkward, Microsoft and Apple have been working together to bring an Apple TV app to the Xbox console. The first evidence of this work has surfaced on Twitter and the arrival of the app should be sooner, rather than later, as long as plans do not change.

But to say things are a bit awkward here is a mild understatement. Apple wants to put its Apple TV app on Xbox which is effectively a micro-store/service and Microsoft wants to bring its Cloud Gaming service to iOS but Apple is currently blocking that effort.

So why should Microsoft let Apple put its TV app on Xbox if Apple will not let Xbox put the app it wants on iOS? That’s a good question but potentially this is a chip Microsoft can use to bargain with Apple to make xCloud on iOS a reality.

This isn’t the first time Microsoft and Apple have worked together, Apple put iTunes into the Microsoft Store several years ago. This was a big win, at the time, for Microsoft who was trying to promote its store as the best place to download an app for Windows but that dream has slowly dissolved in the following years.

The other interesting scenario is bringing xCloud to the Apple TV. Apple has its own gaming service and you can play games on the Apple TV from Apple but being able to use xCloud on any Apple TV would be a big win for Microsoft as that opens the door to additional customers for its Game Pass subscription service.

How this all will shake out at the end of the day is not known yet but hopefully, these two companies can find a way to bring all services to both platforms as that’s the win consumers really want.

Tagged with Apple, Microsoft, Xbox