To no one’s surprise, Apple is mulling over plans to begin producing original programming, according to a Variety report that details the tech giant’s inevitable contest with Netflix, Amazon, Hulu and YouTube. Apple representatives declined to comment for Variety’s piece, but here are a few takeaways you should know:

• The company is meeting with Hollywood executives to gauge interest in producing original content that Apple will host. Prospective development and production divisions could be introduced soon, with eyes on a full operation in place by next year. It’s unclear how much of the heavy lifting will be done in-house, as opposed to purchasing distribution rights to titles from established studios, as Netflix did with this year’s “Beasts of No Nation” and “The Ridiculous Six.”

• There’s no word on whether the plans will include movies, TV series or both.

• Apple made a bid earlier this year to work with the stars of BBC motor show “Top Gear” on a new series, which ultimately landed at Amazon.

• The Apple TV, which is reportedly due for an upgrade announcement at the company’s press event next week, could play a big part in these plans. Regardless, it’s unclear whether the programming would take the form of a subscription VOD model akin to Netflix or a network-based buffet like the Sony PlayStation Vue, or whether Apple will stick to the pay-per-download approach it currently employs on iTunes.

For more on Apple’s initiative, head to Variety.

Also on HuffPost:

– This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.