It was an observation more than anything on what appears to be peoples viewing habits/cost, un scientific based on what I am seeing at the shelves not what Apple should do. And I think this will be affected by price if it is done.
I hope Apple will do it and do it right, aim for the people that have bought 4k ready TV and say "hey, you want content, we got it". The cost, as per OP question, will play into the people that have the kit. It seems that many still watch in a lessor format and be happy with it. This will affect pricing I assume. Also I cannot imagine how they work out the pricing models across countries.
However if I am to pay, for example, £15 for a film, then the quality had better be good. A few more quid and I get the hard copy at a better quality (OK, bit rates and coders and compression etc etc can be misleading and a whole subject matter on their own). Rental at the right price then I can forego quality to a small extent, say a film I am happy to watch once but not buy.
I have not got one (Apple TV) at the moment because it is HD only. It will be cost and how it works, it will need a wow factor past my ISP provided 4K, that is very good but limited content, and my 4k player with its benefits (and drawbacks) and HDR. The UK is a different market to the US as it is different to Japan etc. etc. Hate to work that lot out.
I don't get all the speculation. As I noted earlier in this thread, we've been down this road many times, and the script doesn't change. Pricing practices don't change, regardless of country - they have to discourage cross-border brokerage. Adoption rates for new formats are purely economic - the higher the average citizen's standard of living, the faster the country's adoption rate. Regardless of nation, either you're a deep-pockets fan/connoisseur/early-adopter, or you're a mainstream consumer, or you're a disinterested hold-out.
The media producers push the technology changes, to justify a higher price ("for better quality"), and to stimulate new buying by customers whose purchasing activity has tapered off. The hardware manufacturers are happy to oblige, as they like a good excuse to sell new gear. Hardware and software interests gather to coordinate the roll-out, the press pumps out lots of "Gee whiz, this is going to be great," and a small part of the consumer base starts salivating.
Early on, availability of media and hardware is thin, and the cost of new hardware is high. Only the most passionate consumers jump on. Soon, availability of media is broadly-based, cheaper hardware is available, and the mass market is pulled in. Eventually the old media and old hardware is hard to come by, fetching collectibles prices from the nostalgic. Wait long enough and the old stuff becomes nearly worthless, as the nostalgic die off.
For physical media, the transitions had to be carefully orchestrated, as inventory had to be produced in each format, in the correct quantities. Downloadables have taken much of the sting out of this - bandwidth and storage space costs don't have much affect on the producers, though the distribution outlets do have to anticipate increased bandwidth demands.
Apple hasn't been around long enough to be through many of these media cycles - its first transition was CD/DVD to downloadables. They totally skipped BluRay and ditched CD/DVD early, as they were the pacesetter for downloadables. Apple essentially pulled the record industry into downloadables, because iPod was a revolutionary opportunity for Apple. That kind of opportunity is rare in any industry. Today, with Apple solidly enmeshed in the media mainstream? Moving from HD to 4K is just an evolutionary change for Apple. When the producers and other hardware makers are ready for the mainstream transition to 4K, Apple will be ready. It's clear that Apple's next attempted revolution won't be in video, it'll be in AR.
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