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Apple TV Gains New FXNOW Channel

Apple TV is a mixed bag.

Pros: Fast/Easy/Attractive UI (often much better than cable STB alternatives especially On Demand Browsing). Seamless integration with other Apple devices (i.e. Airplay). Small form factor/portability, looks nice.

Cons: Many channels require cable authentication. Annoying non-unified cable authentication. Limited UI/Lack of customization. Missing some major streaming content such as Amazon Prime. Limited number of Live channels (I think only ESPN, ABC, Bloomberg, and CNBC).

What I would like to see:

Unified cable authentication system
Most customization of UI (similar to IOS folder system)
Introduce gaming platform and controller
Enable Siri
Increase streaming content (Amazon Prime)
Increase number of Live channels (Fox, CBS, NBC).
App Store
 
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jmcgeejr said:
Pretty much, if they didnt do an app store at least the ability to create your own (such as plexconnect without the trailer/imovie etc hijack), every time I see new content provider I just go in and hide it, I dont give a rats ass about them.
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I don't see them doing a full on store but given the space limits I agree that being able to choose what apps we have based on our interests and available service would be nice.
 
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So far in watching one of the episodes of Hotel Hell, commercial breaks only run one commercial. Much better than watching live.
 
Again, it's the content owners still afraid of losing that lucrative cable company revenue, that's stopping them offering the content on devices like the Apple TV. I wish content creators like HBO and ESPN would realize just how much power they really have, and do what they need to do. If just those two networks offered independent subscriptions outside of cable, do you realize how many millions of households would drop cable? Holy crap, I know they get a lot of money from cable, but get it directly from the consumer, and they could charge more like $10-20/month instead of like the $5/month they get per subscriber from the cable companies. You wouldn't be losing any money HBO and ESPN, I guarantee you. Call their bluff.
 
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I wonder will I be able to watch sons of anarchy live or will I have to wait for them to make episode available?
 
I wish, I dream....

Wouldn't it be great if the BBC would be added to Apple TV.

Best of BBC:
• British Sitcoms
• BBC Earth (brilliant stuff like Planet Earth, Africa, etc.)
• ...etc.
• And, of course, Top Gear (all episodes)

And, while I'm at the British stuff, Sky Sports, please. All the Live stuff.
 
I have been waiting too long for a refresh of AppleTV. If I buy another one now, a refresh will debut in Feb2015. So, no, I will wait till.
 
ChrisCW11 said:
Apple should simply stop selling Apple TV outside the US because it is actually a dismal product when used elsewhere.
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It's not much better in the US. Half of the "channels" don't work with my cable provider, and the ones that do mostly offer a limited selection of episodes of mostly shows I wouldn't watch anyway. We just use it for Netflix and watching iTunes movies that we own or rent. That's about it. Thankfully, you can hide apps you don't want now, so it has that going for it.
 
caligomez said:
I don't think that's up to Apple.. No network wants to bite the hand that feeds them (cable companies). So we'll just be stuck on this merry go round until a major player (like HBO) decides to cut the cord.
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Apple is big enough to push their weight around. I could imagine something similar to what Apple did with ebooks, where Apple held everyones hand. If all the major channels make the choice together, there's not really a whole lot cable can do to punish them all. Of course there were legal issues with ebooks, so I'm not sure if those implications would exist for tv channels.

2010mini said:
Small monthly fee?!?? Roflol
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Sure, if it costs $100 a month for 200 channels ($0.50 per channel), it's reasonable to imagine being able to buy individual channels for around $5-8 a month. Or something like the ESPN package for $10.

Then I'd get netflix, espn, and maybe 3 other channels all for ~$30 a month.

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aprofetto8 said:
I'm convinced this is what Jobs meant when he said he had finally cracked the TV.
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I am convinced that this is in no way what Jobs had in mind. And if it was, he must have been going senile towards the end.
 
No thanks!

Like a lot of other posters, I will be hiding these channels. Not so much because of the cable subscription requirement, but more because I have no need or desire to watch any Murdoch-owned TV.
 
Another useless streaming I can not enjoy thanks Apple and Cable. Apple we are still waiting for Amazon Prime.
 
2010mini said:
Small monthly fee?!?? Roflol
Click to expand...

Yes. Small (relatively speaking) monthly fee.

I pay $120/month for U-Verse right now. It will go up to $160 in January cuz, you know, introductory deal boooolchit.

And I will sign whatever you want me to sign, in my own blood, that would lock me in to a contract for $30/month just to have all the ESPN channels on the AppleTV. Literally, ESPN is the only reason why I will probably end up staying bound by the cable far longer than I want to.
 
I have the best of both worlds, brother's DirecTV login and brother in law's Cox login. Its reasonably close to meeting my streaming needs.
 
I'm not sure why so many cable subscribers are complaining that they can simply watch these channels via their cable boxes. I think the point of these ATV channels is their On-Demand functionality. I have a couple shows that i would like to watch and sometimes I don't have time to watch when they air, so this is perfect for me as I don't have a DVR either. I'll take what I can get.
 
And I wonder....

Okay, in some cases it is easier and less expensive to buy cable shows outright in the iTunes store. and watch network TV (when they are running new shows, that is if they can make it all the way through the season too).

Since Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hulu are all offering their own content, do you think Apple with it's fleet (as opposed to just 'a' boatload) would ever offer their own content, especially considering the relationship they already have with ABC/Disney and their history with Pixar?

Or could Apple come to a point where shows can be rented like movies. Instead of paying $40 to own a season, you could pay $10 and get them delivered next day with 1 week to watch them?

Or they could set them up to stream or sit, but with advertisements for free, giving the user the opportunity to buy, rent or stream with commercials whenever they wanted to? Not that Apple really needs a new revenue stream, but there is one in Apple TV that is being overlooked (or poorly negotiated).

Also, I wonder if production companies that are getting turned away from network and cable, that are turning to subscription media have approached Apple with some kind of deal and if Apple would even look at it. They've set the bar pretty high with Pixar.
 
TonyPaco said:
Yes. Small (relatively speaking) monthly fee.

I pay $120/month for U-Verse right now. It will go up to $160 in January cuz, you know, introductory deal boooolchit.

And I will sign whatever you want me to sign, in my own blood, that would lock me in to a contract for $30/month just to have all the ESPN channels on the AppleTV. Literally, ESPN is the only reason why I will probably end up staying bound by the cable far longer than I want to.
Click to expand...

But Tony, Disney wants you to pay for all of their products, not just ESPN. Disney is not going to piecemeal their property.
 
Standard replies to any MacRumors post stating a new channel has been added to AppleTV.

"Come on Apple, let's have an App Store already."
"Great Another channel to hide."
"Why can't I delete a channel, I know I can hide it, but I want it gone."
"Why do I need a cable subscription to get this?"
"The interface needs to be updated."

Feel free to Cut&Paste these replies for future announcements.

:p:D
 
I wonder why any provider would prevent access vs. other cable channels. We’ve got HBOGO, but no access to FXNOW (we’re DirecTV subscribers).

?

Arman said:
Apple TV is a mixed bag.

Pros: Fast/Easy/Attractive UI (often much better than cable STB alternatives especially On Demand Browsing). Seamless integration with other Apple devices (i.e. Airplay). Small form factor/portability, looks nice.

Cons: Many channels require cable authentication. Annoying non-unified cable authentication. Limited UI/Lack of customization. Missing some major streaming content such as Amazon Prime. Limited number of Live channels (I think only ESPN, ABC, Bloomberg, and CNBC).

What I would like to see:

Unified cable authentication system
Most customization of UI (similar to IOS folder system)
Introduce gaming platform and controller
Enable Siri
Increase streaming content (Amazon Prime)
Increase number of Live channels (Fox, CBS, NBC).
App Store
Click to expand...

Nicely put together, I’m agree on many points (in the pro and con lists).

One thing I’d like to see is a rethinking of the iOS remote app. Change it from emulating the buttons of the standard remote, to being more of a UI that replicates the AppleTV content (think more like AirPlay).


charlituna said:
I don't see them doing a full on store but given the space limits I agree that being able to choose what apps we have based on our interests and available service would be nice.
Click to expand...

Yeah, you know, when people say “app store”, I’m not really even sure what they would offer unless - per the quote above - they opened up the platform for games. Otherwise, outside of video content and a few info services (like weather), I’m not sure what else you’d want? Social apps? Access to things like email?


3rdiguy said:
I wonder will I be able to watch sons of anarchy live or will I have to wait for them to make episode available?
Click to expand...

If HBOGO is an example, it runs just about in real time. In fact, during major TV events like the GOT season finale, it actually crashes and burns :D
 
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