Apple Aims to 'Erase Distinction Between Live and On-Demand' TV Content

[SockRolid]

I called it! Posted this idea a few weeks back... This is really the only thing that makes sense and the only way to truly revolutionize the Cable TV industry.

I've been expecting Apple to (eventually) do this for years.
It makes so much sense to eliminate local copies (DVR recordings).

 

[Zunjine]

This is exactly what I don't want: dozens of icons all representing different sources, like what's on the AppleTV today.

They need to "erase the distinction" between any sources. I don't need to know if the feed is from Netflix, Hulu, HBO, ABC, YouTube, or whatever. I just want to say the name of the program (or description, or search query) and have the box give me what I want.

I imagine it working more as a content type box. I could see one for movies, one for documentaries, one for sports, and so on. Within each of those you would find a list of content and each one would come along with a "source" label - so a show being broadcast by Sky Atlantic would have a little icon next to it.

Obviously the real killer would be a "me" box which, seeing as this is a smart TV, would know what I liked to watch and my patterns; it's wednesday night and I'm always work stressed by this time of the week so I tend to look for a light comedy so, hey presto, I'm offered a light comedy. If it's Siri driven you could just ask for "something fun" or "something challenging" and a smart search would be created. You're offered one item and you say "No. Too silly." and it would take that and refine the search. "What was that documentary my brother emailed me about?" and there it is! Or "My wife watched a movie last week with Anthony Hopkins in it..." and it's on the screen, ready to go.

Thinking about that last point - one of the key things that they talked about in iOS 6 was that Siri had learned all about movies...

 

[tekmoe]

I have been waiting years for this to happen. I hope they smash Time Warner into pieces.

 

[ConCat]

U.S only I bet.

Well they have to start somewhere. It's purely convenience really. They'll probably go international at some point, after trying it out in America first.

 

[3282868]

Let me get this right:

-- it will be expensive,

-- it will be like Tivo, but sexed up by being on a "cloud,"

-- it will have ATV-like UI and

-- it will be locked like Fort Knox.

Oh, and you still have to be locked to a cable provider, in addition to Apple.

I just can't wait for this cluster-fck between the Cable Cos and Apple!

All together now, grab your ankles and say "AH-pple!"

Well stated.

I'm really tiring of pushing consumption of media and anti-social "social" networks. Do we need more mindlessness in our lives? 24/7 television? We've become a society of consumers with little production and creativity (comparatively). Aside from these matters, I can't imagine this being less expensive than the current "business model" from service providers and the systems utilized.

How about eBooks that run on Mac's instead of iDevices? What a novel idea, reading a book bought through Apple on a Mac?! (pun intended)

Unplug from all this media and get back into life (and no, I don't spend all my time on MacRumors or Facebook)

 

[Mazeman]

I wonder how the pricing would work. Will I only pay for what I watch? If I watch nothing for a month, will my bill be zero? That's what I'd really like; true a la carte pricing.

I hate being forced to buy "basic" cable packages and thereby subsidize some of the networks I dislike on those packages. The dinosaur networks need to live or die on their own merit.

 

[hipnetic]

Well, if this updated rumor is accurate, then the existing ATV2/3 already meets the description of this rumored set-top box. If this rumor is to believed, then it's simply a matter of getting the studios and/or local cable operators on-board with the idea of letting them stream TV shows within minutes of it airing, vs whatever delay the current iTunes TV show catalog has to work with. I guess I could see them sidestepping the major networks (CBS, ABC, etc.) directly if their previous discussions stalled and instead going to local cable operators and working with them instead. I suspect this will also involve a change to the buy-a-single-episode mentality, but will it require having a full subscription to the cable programming (paid to the cable operators, perhaps with Apple taking a cut), with the ATV serving as simply a better, more user-friendly cable box/DVR?

FWIW, I was a long-time TiVo user who switched to a Windows Media Center PC coupled with a SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime network-based 3-tuner cablecard box. It works great, and it's even pretty iOS-friendly because I run Plex and MC-TVConverter, which allows me to (once the TV show has completely finished recording and MC-TVConverter has looked up the metadata for the show for Plex's benefit) watch the shows on an iPhone or iPad. I'd like to convince my wife to let me drastically scale back our cable package to a lifeline package (about $20) which just has the major networks.

I'd like to see Apple handle all of this hassle for us, but it doesn't look like that will happen. Even if they pull off some better deals, I could imagine that it will still involve a delay and will not have the local news stations. I hate the mass media news, but my wife still likes to watch it in the morning.

 

[diazj3]

I called it! Posted this idea a few weeks back... This is really the only thing that makes sense and the only way to truly revolutionize the Cable TV industry.

dude! you're so awesome! you should definitely call Apple and tell them this was your idea a couple of weeks ago. Show them the post you made, so they'll give you a bunch of million dollars for it...

cheers!

 

[tech4all]

I called it! Posted this idea a few weeks back...

Congratulations!

 

[jfrancis04]

Give me live sports and I'm all over it. That's the one thing holding me back from canceling cable.

 

[HiRez]

If it doesn't allow me to skip commercials faster than I can on my TiVo, it's a no-go for me. I can get through a 2.5-3 hour game in under an hour. If it works like Netflix does on AppleTV, forget it, the navigation of the stream is way too slow. Maybe more buffering could improve this though.

 

[Technarchy]

I dont buy it.

This idea of a cloud based DVR just doesnt meet to the things that we know Apple considers in all endeavors, as said by Tim Cook and Steve Jobs

1: Can we control the key technology?

2: Can we make a significant contribution far beyond what others have done in this area?

I don't see a cloud based DVR being significant enough. Sure, Apple could bundle DVR services into Apple TV, but that's just a feature, not something that can usher in a new era.

 

[slimbek]

I just want my Apple TV to DVR to the cloud (or my home pc) and have an antenna input for free-to-air. Forget all the complicated other stuff... leave that to individual Apps.


But if I can choose any App, tell the ATV to record a show from that App, and then watch it later either at home or on an iOS device... oooh baby!!

 

[ixodes]

I have been waiting years for this to happen. I hope they smash Time Warner into pieces.

I'm sure they will, with the help of Our Money

If Apple prevails, they will teach us the true meaning of Premium Paid Content

This ought to be very interesting, that's for sure.

 

[divinox]

So much for "cracking" TV. Not that i am surprised, but still.

P.S.

To me, however, it seems as if it should be a cheaper solution to rely partially on P2P transmission of content (cf. Spotify), rather than a full-blown cloud solution. Afaik, bandwidth is far more costly than storage.

 

[slu]

This has the potential to ease up traffic jams, I think.

I've spent tons of time watching traffic patterns, and I have come to suspect that a major show ending or going to commercial causes many people to leave wherever they are at roughly the same time and cause micro-traffic jams (where for seemingly no reason traffic at a spot hardly moves for five minutes but at almost any other time would flow quite freely.)

This is just crazy.

 

[thekev]

I'm sure they will, with the help of Our Money

If Apple prevails, they will teach us the true meaning of Premium Paid Content

This ought to be very interesting, that's for sure.

I can live with just watching even less television content.

 

[Ieo]

This is pretty damn exciting...although, the angry old dinosaurs running content production and distribution will probably fight it tooth and nail unless there's a ridiculous, impossibile pile of money waiting for them. But if anyone can do it, it's apple.

 

[dsburdette]

Agree, agree, agree...

A set-top box makes much more sense than a full blown TV set. I've been saying it for months, is the rumor mill catching on yet ? Apple has no advantage in competing in the "pixel array" space with the likes of LG, Sony, Panasonic, Sharp and Samsung.

Where they do is in the content business. A set top box reaches a far wider audience with their licensed content.

I totally agree. I think so many people have an actual TV stuck in their head when rumors began about this "upcoming" new product that Steve said they finally cracked. I personally think the vision is really some balls-to-the-wall STB/DVR-type box that is relatively inexpensive and easily upgradeable. Basically an even more capable Apple TV of today. Perhaps Siri-enabled too.

I really don't think it's going to be a $2500 TV or something like that but rather a kick-ass all-one-box that can plug into anything.

 

[Flitzy]

I smell a Samsung device

Not possible.

Apple would have to make it first so they can steal it for it to be a Samsung device.

 

[battlefieldfan1]

A set-top box makes much more sense than a full blown TV set. I've been saying it for months, is the rumor mill catching on yet ? Apple has no advantage in competing in the "pixel array" space with the likes of LG, Sony, Panasonic, Sharp and Samsung.

Where they do is in the content business. A set top box reaches a far wider audience with their licensed content.

Actually, they can.
True, Apple may not have the brains to engineer a high quality TV screen like the companies you've mentioned, but they can cover up their TV's defect by using a smaller TV screen size. That's what they did with the iphone's sub-HD resolution; they used a smaller screen to cover up its low resolution.

I expect a 19" Apple TV to have the same PPI and image quality as a 45" Samsung TV. I'm sure it'll be a huge success.

 

[harley3k]

At first this sounded weird and un-apple like, but now I think it makes a lot of sense.

It's the same thing they've done with the iPhone - they partnered with the carriers to provide a superior device to use on their networks. It resembles the Tivo model... sell a premium box that works on the cable's network.

A few must haves:
-Cloud-DVR is right - No power sucking Hard Drives or "hopper" tech
-No Cablecard - Tivo has this and it sucks to setup
which is why I have never upgraded my Tivo to a new model
-No Coax - Have a single Receiver hooked up in the house and then
wireless to all TVs
-The rest is really in the software.

And this fits right in line with what Steve Jobs said when he said "No one wants another box".

 

[macUser2007]

This is pretty damn exciting...although, the angry old dinosaurs running content production and distribution will probably fight it tooth and nail unless there's a ridiculous, impossibile pile of money waiting for them. But if anyone can do it, it's apple.

Uhm, I wonder if we are reading the same story?

The way I read it, "the angry old dinosaurs running content production and distribution" will be quite happy, as they will still provide the content and the distribution.

Apple will simply enable/join them in fleecing you for few more $$$ a year, by providing "enhanced" cloud service, which I would imagine will also "enhance" your cost as well.

It looks like all Apple is doing is muscle in on the market of Tivo and the likes of Scientific Atlantic.

I expect this is going to work similarly to Apple's entry into the ebook market, where it gave the content providers the opportunity to force the market to adopt the agency model. It gave Apple an entry, but it resulted in 20-30% price increases for end consumers.

 

[shoulin333]

I hope they talk to DirecTV, no way, not even for Apple would i go back to Cable.

 

[Macclone]

Commercials generally last about 8 minutes now. So people feel free to run to the store or go pick something up real quick causing mini-traffic jams. It is an international phenomenon known as "jammin' " .

You need a new hobby