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RE: Apple TV will change your life. Computer World below - admin - 08-14-2012
I was sort of looking for those margins that the article mentions, Palm, and I have to say that I don't immediately see them. Some iPhone consumer friendly software to pull programs from Itunes, Hulu and Amazon?
But then again, I'm hardly Steve Jobs, needless to say..
RE: Apple TV will change your life. Computer World below - Palm - 08-14-2012
I think thre are many options for margins STP. They mention gaming, etc. with the hoard of cash that Apple always has I can see them acquiring companies like Hulu etc when they can't make a product better. Jobs believed that the best artists don't just create but swipe ideas. They hire and pay the best engineers. My guess is Jobs's vision was a huge Apple conglomerate that controls/owns the best content and by having the BEST user interfaces (their specialty) they can best deliver the content that consumers want. They have the 35 and under consumer pretty well captured and an increasing number of those over 35. Their test will be staying fresh and nimble.
RE: Apple TV will change your life. Computer World below - admin - 08-17-2012
Apple Looking to Bring Live Broadcasts to Apple TV
By Jon Mundy
16 August 2012
Apple TV shows
Apple is reportedly looking into the possibility of turning its Apple TV system into a full on set top box. This would allow it to handle live TV broadcasts as well as streaming its own library of content.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Apple is currently in negotiations with a number of cable operators in the US to instigate such a move. It’s claimed that Apple had investigated producing such a cable box device prior to launching Apple TV two years ago.
Apple’s revised approach to TV is far from certain of success, however. According to WSJ’s sources, negotiations with cable operators have stalled due to Apple’s typically strong demands - including a 30 per cent cut of “certain transactions.”
Back in 2010 Steve Jobs related his own reservations about creating another cable TV box. One of his chief concerns was, rather prophetically it seems, the trouble of negotiating with local cable providers. He also pointed out the problem with the current Apple TV and its rivals - they added yet more clutter to the living room.
Not long before his death Jobs told his biographer Walter Isaacson about his last big project - to “create an integrated television set that is completely easy to use.”
While it may seem that this report of a separate Apple TV cable box delays or detracts from that project in some way, WSJ’s sources claim that the technology could be integrated into a smart TV. Is this a necessary step on the way to a pure, standalone, Apple TV?
RE: Apple TV will change your life. Computer World below - jft310 - 08-17-2012
Appl;e TV is a set top box thst controls everything you might use on your TV. They are the funnel. Only one remote for all devices. Or an I phone ot a MAC
'admin' pid='8081' datel Wrote:What Are Apple's Plans for TV? Judging from Apple's recent moves, I predict the company will polish its set-top box rather than release an Apple-branded television set. Tim Bajarin By Tim Bajarin August 13, 2012 In his biography of Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson detailed a conversation with the late Apple CEO in which he says the company nailed interactive TV in the way of UI, content, and hardware. Although he did not announce any new products, he basically laid the groundwork for a lot of speculation as to what Apple might do for TVs in the future. Most theories suggest that Apple is going to make an actual television and might even release it sometime in the next two years. Others interpreted Jobs' reference to mean the current Apple TV will become a greater vehicle for content and UI innovation. Over the last two weeks, Apple has made some very important—and to us long time Apple watchers, curious—moves. It added Hulu to the Apple TV lineup and let Amazon release its instant video streaming app for the iPad. I say that this is a curious move because these products compete directly with Apple's own iTunes store and, in theory, will impact its services revenue. While Apple could still make a physical TV, I think this move incorporating Hulu and Amazon is very telling of Apple's future TV strategy. The key here is that for Apple's current TV device to make money, it needs content. By biting the bullet and offering competing services to iTunes, the value proposition of an Apple TV device rises. Apple can now accelerate its TV plans through areas it excels in, namely software and human interfaces. I believe that it can do all that it wants to do in these areas through an external box that connects to a TV and delivers iTunes and its cloud services. The problem with TVs is that people buy them and hold on to them for five to seven years on average. While Apple could design a TV that could be upgraded in software, it makes more sense to create a sophisticated box that works with all televisions and allows the company to innovate around this model. More importantly, as technology advances, Apple could redesign the box every year or two and, given its low cost, people could just upgrade to get these new features. That is what it does now with the iPod, iPhone, and iPad and it makes sense to carry that business model to the Apple TV, too. While Apple is no doubt a hardware and software company, it is pretty clear to me that the software exists to help sell hardware and ultimately deliver a lucrative ecosystem of products and services. I am not sure how much margin it has with the Apple TV, but knowing Apple's way of thinking about margins, I believe that it makes enough profit to keep its "hobby" going. This buys time to innovate around the software UI and services that make these boxes very valuable to Apple customers and attract new users. Also, Hulu debuted on the iPad and migrated over to Apple TV. It is only a matter of time before Amazon's streaming service shows up on Apple TV as well. Apple knows content is king and that it helps it sell hardware. As I stated earlier, Apple could create a standalone TV, but I would be highly surprised if it did. Instead, I believe Jobs and his team saw the long-term evolution of what the external Apple TV could become. This box, tied to advanced UIs and innovative services with content that is at the center of Apple's vision, can revolutionize the interactive TV experience.
RE: Apple TV will change your life. Computer World below - jft310 - 08-18-2012
Apple’s Market Value Surpasses $600B on IPad Speculation
By Adam Satariano on August 17, 2012
Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s shares rose to a record and the company’s market value surpassed $600 billion on speculation that production has started on a smaller version of the iPad tablet as well as a new television product.
The shares climbed 1.9 percent to $648.11 at the close in New York, for a market capitalization of $602.3 billion. The stock has gained 60 percent this year.
With tablet sales predicted by research firm Yankee Group to overtake those of personal computers by 2015, Apple is introducing a smaller iPad model to fend off challengers to its top-selling device. Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) later this year will begin selling its Surface tablet, while Google Inc. (GOOG) introduced its Nexus 7 device in June. Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) debuted its Kindle Fire tablet last year. The tinier iPad may go on sale by October and a new television could reach stores by 2013, according a research report from Peter Misek, an analyst at Jefferies & Co.
“We believe the iTV is in full production,” Misek said in the report. He recommends buying the shares and raised his price estimate to $900 from $800.
Misek points to activity at Sharp Corp. (6753), a maker of TV screens, and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. (2317), the company that assembles the iPad for Apple, and other specialty chemical and TV component suppliers as the basis for his predictions. Hon Hai had a 5 percent revenue increase in July from the previous month, while sales are typically unchanged at this time of year, he said.
IPad Mini
Apple plans to debut a smaller, cheaper iPad by the end of this year, people familiar with the plans said in July. Misek said Apple would sell at least 8 million of the miniature iPad in the three-month period ending in December, and generate about $2.4 billion in revenue by pricing the device at $300.
The company’s shipments of iPads surged 44 percent to 17 million in the second quarter, giving the company its biggest share of the market in more than a year as devices from competitors lost ground, a report this month from IHS said.
For its television product, Apple is in talks with at least one of the largest U.S. cable companies about teaming up on a product to carry live television and other content, a person with knowledge of the plans said yesterday.
An Apple TV could sell about 2 million units in the quarter ending in December, with an average price of about $1,250, Misek projects.
To contact the reporter on this story: Adam Satariano in San Francisco at asatariano1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Tom Giles at tgiles5@bloomberg.net
RE: Apple TV will change your life. Computer World below - admin - 08-18-2012
It's a juggernaut. Many reasons why it's the most valuable company in the world (and it isn't even that expensive, not even at its all-time high). Too bad Steve left waaay too soon..
RE: Apple TV will change your life. Computer World below - admin - 08-19-2012
How an Apple TV Refresh Might Work
By Ian Paul, PCWorld Aug 17, 2012 9:54 AM
Apple fans hoping for a television revolution from the iOS maker may be disappointed if a new report about the company’s upcoming television plans are correct. A day after claims that Apple has put the oft-rumored Apple television set on hold in favor of a new set-top box, a new report sheds a few details about how the supposed new set-top box might work.
Apple is designing the new set-top box to simplify how you access and view programming and erase the distinction between live and recorded content, according to The Wall Street Journal. These claims echo reports from late 2009 that said Apple was working on a $30 per month TV subscription service you would access via iTunes.
The iOS Box
The biggest vision for Apple’s supposed new set-top box, which may or may not be an Apple TV refresh, would be a DVR feature that saves shows to an online storage service, presumably iCloud. You could then access your saved shows across all your devices, including the iPhone, iPad, and MacBook. Steve Jobs imagined a similar feature for a future Apple television set, according to Walter Isaacson’s biography of the late Apple founder.
In this configuration, the new box would also have a Start Over feature that lets you restart from the beginning shows that are already in progress. Time Warner Cable already offers such a service, as do other cable providers around the world. The rumored new Apple box would also have an iOS-style menu featuring large, easily identifiable icons, social media features to let you share links to television shows, and easy access to all episodes of current seasons of popular TV series.
What's the Plus?
If it becomes a reality, the new Apple set-top box sounds like an interesting service; but—assuming the reports are accurate—the device will be more evolutionary than a revolutionary change. Anyone who owns a Slingbox can already access recorded television across mobile devices and PCs. Getting access to the latest episodes of current TV shows is only a few clicks away on Amazon, Hulu, or iTunes—excluding content from networks such as HBO and Showtime, of course. And anything you can’t find through regular channels you can get for free, albeit illegitimately, through a simple Google search, at least for now.
So what would be the attraction of a new Apple set-top box? If I had to guess, it would be price. The cheapest Slingbox runs about $130 to $180, while a TiVo DVR will set you back at least $150, and even your cable provider’s DVR probably costs you about $120 per year. If Apple can beat those prices, it just might have a hit on its hands.
The company already offers a $99 Apple TV set-top box that lets you purchase television shows and movies on iTunes, stream content through your Netflix or Hulu Plus subscription, and access content from devices on your home network. If Apple packed its purported new DVR-style features into Apple TV and could keep the price around $100, the device would likely be a hit.
What’s not clear, however, is whether a monthly subscription would be required to use the supposed new features. Apple is talking to cable providers and content producers about the new device, the Journal says, and they won’t like the idea of people storing TV shows in the cloud and making them accessible anywhere for free.
RE: Apple TV will change your life. Computer World below - admin - 08-19-2012
Apple's TV Vision: Sharing, Full On-Demand, Icons
TV Device Interface Would Simplify Programming; Company Faces Hurdles With Cable Operators
By JESSICA E. VASCELLARO And SAM SCHECHNER
Apple Inc.'s vision for a new device that can be used as a set-top box includes features designed to simplify accessing and viewing programming and erase the distinction between live and on-demand content, people briefed on Apple's plans said.
Apple is in talks with cable companies to allow consumers to use Apple TV as their main set-top boxes. Peter Kafka joins us on digits to explain why it appears Apple is working within the cable companies to expand the Apple TV brand. Photo: Getty Images.
The Cupertino, Calif.-based company proposes giving viewers the ability to start any show at any time through a digital-video recorder that would store TV shows on the Internet. Viewers even could start a show minutes after it has begun. Time Warner Cable Inc. TWC +0.27% offers a limited version of this feature called Start Over.
Apple wants its new cable set-top box device to include an array of new entertainment features. One of Apple's big aims is to erase the differences between live and on-demand programming. Shalini Ramachadran has details on The News Hub. Photo: AFP/GettyImages.
Another significant feature of the Apple set-top device is likely to be its user interface, which could resemble the navigation icons on Apple's iPad. While the design may change, the interface is expected to be easier for people to use than existing cable on-screen menus, widely viewed as clunky.
Apple's device also may create space on the TV screen for social media features, such as sharing TV shows through services like Twitter Inc., the people said. Apple also wants users to be able to access content from the device on other Apple products like iPhones and iPads.
Apple spokesman Tom Neumayr declined to comment on what he characterized as rumor and speculation.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that Apple has been talking with major cable operators, including Time Warner Cable, about letting consumers use an Apple device as a set-top box for live television and other content.
In recent weeks, Apple also has approached entertainment companies, which own television content, with an outline of what it wants the new device to do, distributing, in at least one case, a document outlining its capabilities, one of the people said.
Cable operators' existing rights over TV content would likely not be sufficient to allow some of Apple's proposed new services, the people said, particularly the Web-based DVR idea. As a result entertainment companies may need to agree to expand cable operators' rights in order for the Apple box to be deployed. Apple also may negotiate directly with media companies over other features, such as new ways of offering past seasons of shows it already has some rights to through iTunes, one of these people said.
People walk through the Apple store in Grand Central Terminal in July.
Plenty of hurdles remain. Apple doesn't appear to have any deals with operators to sell the device and getting them on board is likely to be challenging. The relationship between Apple, cable companies and content owners remains tense. Apple has tried repeatedly over the past few years to persuade entertainment companies to grant it rights for various kinds of TV offerings, with limited success.
In the past, however, Apple was trying to change the existing pay TV system by, for instance, offering individual rentals of TV show episodes, which TV companies feared could undercut their business models. Apple's current plan involves a less radical path than past ideas the company has contemplated. Still, some in the entertainment industry may fear that letting Apple establish any kind of a foothold in television could give the tech giant more power longer term.
Some of the features Apple has discussed are improvements, but not radical changes, to those already available. For instance, Apple wants viewers to be able to access all episodes of current seasons of TV shows, whereas existing video on demand services from cable operators generally often offer only a few episodes of a current season. Apple's proposed device would also provide access to older seasons of shows, which are already available through Apple's iTunes media store.
Even the idea of an on-screen menu with icons has begun to be adopted by cable and satellite operators, such as Dish Network Corp. DISH +2.55%
The talks come as sales of Apple's current TV hardware, a $99 box called Apple TV, are picking up but are still small. The company sold 1.3 million in the quarter that ended in June. The device allows users to access some Internet video on larger screens but doesn't offer traditional channel line-ups. Apple has struck deals with video providers like Netflix Inc. NFLX -0.96% and Hulu LLC to offer apps for the device.
At the same time, media companies are digging in and demanding more money when television distributors want to distribute content in new ways. Whether consumers would pay up for the proposed Apple device, which could be more expensive than renting a traditional set-top box, is another unknown.
Write to Jessica E. Vascellaro at jessica.vascellaro@wsj.com and Sam Schechner at sam.schechner@wsj.com
A version of this article appeared August 17, 2012, on page B1 in the U.S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: Apple Rethinks TV Interface.
RE: Apple TV will change your life. Computer World below - admin - 08-19-2012
iTV ≠ iPod: Why Apple's TV Won't Be Nearly as Disruptive as You Hope
By
Aug 17 2012, 12:00 PM ET
Apple isn't about to destroy cable like it destroyed albums, for one simple reason: The TV business in 2012 is nothing like the music business in 2000.Reuters
Apple wants to be in your living room. And it doesn't want to settle for being the screen in your lap while you watch TV. Apple wants to be the TV.
It's not too hard to see why. Televisions costs hundreds of dollars, and Americans love them. The typical adult spends between four and five hours watching video every day, and the vast majority of that time is spent in front of a TV. If Apple owned the TV, it could command the entire suite of screens in your life.
The possibility of dominating the screen business is reason enough for Apple to try to break into the television industry. But analysts thrilled by the idea that Apple wants to get into TV have convinced themselves that they can untie the cable bundle, and give us when-we-want-it-how-we-want-it video the same way it changed the music industry 12 years ago. But they are missing something important.
The video business in 2012 is nothing like the music business in 2000. So the iTV will be nothing like the iPod.
Apple debuted iTunes and iPods at the perfect moment -- just as the music business was getting rocked by millions of teenagers turning to downloads over albums. So, the music industry struck a controversial deal to unbundle their LPs and sell songs individually for $0.99. How did that work out? Here's a graph of music sales since 1999. Not so hot.
You're a media executive -- maybe at Disney -- and it's 2012. You know the music industry is a shadow of its former self. You partially blame iPods for expediting the decline. How excited are you about giving Apple a sweetheart deal in exchange for unbundling your channels and shows like ESPN and ABC Family in a way that might destroy your business forever?
Oh, really? Not so excited? Okay, follow-up question. How desperate are you to make up for all the money you're losing on teenagers downloading your content for free? Well, let's see, HBO's "Game of Thrones" is the most-illegally-downloaded TV show in America, and HBO subscribers are growing. That doesn't sound so disruptive. Netflix, the company that is supposedly disrupting your live-TV business, is still paying your company tens of millions of dollars a year for the rights to the shows you own. Companies and families are still paying for your content. There's no such thing as Napster for live-TV. Why in the world would you try to destroy your business model by signing a deal that could expedite the end of the cable bundle, which forces every household to pay your company for entertainment they don't even watch?
Techies are conflating the idea that Apple wants to disrupt this TV-watching business with the idea that Apple has a shot at disrupting the actual TV-video business. The fact that Apple is now in talks with cable companies to deliver video to their screen shows pretty clearly that the company has all but given up on trying to license content from media companies -- the ones who own the TV shows you watch -- because it's simply too expensive.
Still, some are holding out hope for the Holy Grail of TV disruption. These conversations "would set Apple up to gradually gain more leverage over the cable companies--until the day when Apple has enough households worldwide that it can go direct to the networks and render the cable companies dumb pipes," Henry Blodget wrote yesterday. Blodget might yet be right. A lot can happen in a few years. But today, what does Apple gain by spending billions of dollars over ten years by buying all the media content we watch and paying for the technology to host and distribute it?
Apple doesn't have to beat Comcast and FiOS to own your living room. It just has to join them.
_________
*To be clear: The Apple TV product that everybody is excited about is separate from a product that exists called (confusingly) Apple TV, a little hockey-pock device that connects your TV to the Internet and lets you play HD content from Netflix, Hulu, or the iTunes store.
RE: Apple TV will change your life. Computer World below - admin - 08-22-2012
Apple Is Prepping New Apple TV, But Not a TV Set
Will Greenwald By Will Greenwald
August 20, 2012
Rumors have been circulating for the past year that Apple is working on an HDTV. It makes the discussion of this subject difficult and the headline of this column confusing, because Apple decided to call its set-top box the Apple TV. How can Apple make an Apple TV when it already has an Apple TV that's not a TV? Let's recognize the naming confusion and just look at what the company might announce in the home theater world.
Apple is not going to release an Apple-branded TV set. It will, however, announce a new Apple TV. The former, the thing that won't happen, is Apple TV in the sense of an HDTV made by Apple. The latter, the thing that almost certainly will happen, is Apple TV in the sense of the Apple TV product.
The HDTV rumors have been floating around for a long time, and they've been more or less unfounded. In fact, rumors have been too generous. It's been HDTV speculation. Apple has done so well with tablets, smartphones, and all-in-one computers that it only makes sense that the company would work on the other big technology purchase of most households: HDTVs. It's a nice thought, but it's very unlikely for a number of reasons.
First, Apple has shown little interest in the home theater aspect of home entertainment. It made the Apple TV and has given it incremental updates, but that's the only concession it has made to couch-based, big-screen media consumption. The iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad all have emphasized putting your media (purchased through Apple) in your pocket or bag. The company might expand its Apple TV product, but it's shown no interest in big screens or sound systems.
Look at AirPlay. Apple made a wireless audio technology that lets you stream music from your Apple device to an AirPlay speaker. It doesn't actually make AirPlay speakers. It lets other companies use the technology and do the work of actually making the speakers, and keeps its sights focused on accessing and playing content. The Apple TV works under a similar principle, accessing and letting you play content but not actually showing it on a big screen or playing it through speakers. If it's not in your hands or on a desk, Apple won't display or otherwise directly output it.
Second, Apple has been focused on high-resolution screens, and HDTVs can't support that. Unlike monitors, smartphones, and tablets, HDTVs only work under a specific set of resolutions. That resolution currently maxes out at 1,920 by 1,080, or 1080p HD. It's possible to have a higher resolution display and use higher resolution media, but there is no standardization for it and no consumer media available at that resolution. Blu-rays, high-definition cable, video game consoles, they all peak at 1080p currently. Apple would have to explain why its new, premium, Apple-branded HDTV is lower resolution than its Thunderbolt Display (27 inches) , Macbook Pro with Retina Display (15 inches) , or even new iPad (10 inches) . Remember when 1,920 by 1,080 was considered super-sharp and perfect for big screens? Not by Apple's standards, and the contrast would be jarring.
Third, the market is oversaturated. Dozens of HDTV manufacturers make HDTVs of all sizes, prices, and features, and there isn't a readily apparant hook for Apple to get into the market. The iMac got big because of its design. The iPod got big because of its interface. The iPad got big because of its design and interface. HDTVs aren't as complicated as computers or Byzantine as pre-iPod MP3 players, and the major brands offer relatively intuitive, simple interfacecs and loads of online services built into their HDTVs. Unless Apple can come up with a big selling point, any HDTVs it makes will blend into the market.
The other, more substantiated rumor, is that Apple is working on a DVR of sorts. While it seems outlandish on the surface, this actually makes perfect sense and is likely the Apple TV product we'll see next month. There are a few compelling reasons why.
First and most obvious, Apple has been making inroads with networks to add their content to Apple TV. Apple already has its own large library of content from studios and cable companies as piecemeal downloads, and already offers streaming services like Netflix and Hulu Plus, which raises the question: what does Apple want? Services like the Prime Time Anytime DVR feature on the Dish Network Hopper is the key to that. Apple doesn't want to simply sell shows as they come out as downloads. It wants to offer a sort of cloud-based DVR system, streaming shows live or with very short delay like most set-top boxes. It's the one approach to content delivery Apple hasn't tried with the Apple TV yet.
Second, Apple is one of the few companies that can do it. It's in a unique position where it has a lot of clout with content providers and is as active on the entertainment distribution side as it is on the technology side. Cable companies are very leery about adding content, especially content that can replace cable service, to products made by tech companies because there isn't much in it for them. With Apple's weight and power in the digital distribution market, it could potentially get the cable-like content access it needs for a service to work.
Third, the Apple TV has been stagnating. The newest version, while still very good, is just a 1080p-capable version of the previous Apple TV. Apple seems to be settling into the pattern of an incremental upgrade one year, a major upgrade the next, and that means the Apple TV is due. When it's already being squeezed by streaming media boxes like Roku and cable company-issued set-top boxes, it needs a big upgrade and now's the time for it.
That's my prediction. We'll see in September, but I'm certain that when Apple lifts the curtain during its presentation, it won't unveil a 40-inch screen.