Apple TV to get subscription model, compete with cable?

By on Dec 23, 2009 at 5:44 PM
General December 23, 2009

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Rumors are starting to fly around about the next iteration of Apple’s somewhat neglected set-top box venture that is the Apple TV. The Wall Street Journal and others are reporting that the Cupertino company has been courting standard and cable networks to provide content, via iTunes, for the Apple TV. The new content is purportedly going to be bundled in small packages and target consumers who only watch a few channels yet often have a 300+ channel cable package, and the accompanying bill. Apple would pay somewhere between $1-2 per subscriber to broadcast companies providing content from standard channels — ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX — and $3-5 per subscriber for cable channels. The WSJ reports that $30 could get you between 15-30 channels on your Apple TV, commercial free. No details on how soon after initial airing the content would become available or how things like live sports would be handled. How about it? Would any of you be interested in a service like this instead of standard cable?

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  • SK1LL5

    Woo-Hoo!!! Finally!

  • Clarkeness

    Heck ya that would be so awesome, I pay for so many channels I never watch!

  • eric

    i would so get it. i’ve already dropped my cable and bought an apple tv and loaded boxee on it. i’ll shell out 30 bucks a month for 30-45 channels

  • Percy

    WOW!!!!! Who knew Apples were THIS good for you? I remember when the pay per channel Bill got killed in the House Vote. THIS IS THE GUT PUNCH ALL CABLE COMPANYS NEED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • Ron

    It is about time someone opened this market. The existing providers would not because they didn’t have to do it.

    Where do I sign up?

  • Patrick

    Hell yes! It’s about time we could pick and choose our own TV lineup instead of paying for crap we never watch.

  • V for Ve

    Quick, dig a hole. The CSPAN triplets are about to die.

  • http://dmoplanner.com Jerret

    Did I not predict this? Did I NOT predict this?!

  • rtc

    Sorry guys, this will never happen. It would be the end of the cable companies and they wont allow that to happen. They know we want to pay for the channels we only use but they would lose money from that model.

    wishful thinking, my guess is this is another rumor.

  • Fin

    I would get it, if the price were right on the subscriptions. Aside from the broadcast channels, it would also have to have hgtv, tnt, syfy, msnbc, bbc, comedy, toon, and similar channels, and hbo and sho as well. Though I only really watch a few shows at most from each channel, so an a-la-carte subscription model would help there. And all of the content would have to be hd, preferably full hd, and must have full 5.1 dolby format audio, for all shows created that way.

    The biggest drawback to the atv has always been that its a closed system — you can only natively play specific mp4 content on the device. Much of what I watch is in other containers, like avi or mkv or flv. And much of that is in 1920×1080. None of which the atv can do. Well, worst case I could use my other media player for that content, but it would be nice to do all this from one device.

    Oh, and what are the chances that the atv will allow you to archive the shows you’ve watched?

  • Keymaker

    Well I pay Direct tv about $70 for 250 channels, the problem is 97% of them are bullshit like CSPAN, NASA and XM radio. If Apple can come up with a way where people can pick their own channels instead of being force to watch bullshit, they will defenally have a winner.

    • Carmen

      How are you “forced to watch bullshit”? I HATE it when people word things this way. No one is forcing you to do anything! No one is sitting you down on your couch and forcing you to watch any channel. Secondly, no one is forcing you to buy cable TV. All I’m saying is watch how you say things, because at best, you just misrepresent situations. At worst, you sound like a pussy-ass bitch who is “forced” into submission.

  • http://(null) alen

    @Keymaker,

    with apple you will just download shows and watch them anywhere you want

    Posted from BGR Mobile (iPhone) at: Rego Park Queens Blvd

  • Ronlap

    Again a game changer. Many cable customers have been asking for ala carte pricing for years. I hate sports but pay hyper inflated cable rates for a handful of spors channels I never watch.

  • Turner

    Hell yes the cable companies need a swift kick in the teeth.

  • Bob Nurns

    AppleTV got so hot it burned the top of our entertainment cabinet.

  • cm

    Can I just start sending them my $30/month now, to show them JUST HOW MUCH this service is in demand? Let’s show them the money.

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