“Change. Change hurts. This is a truism. Perhaps that’s why the older you become the more change-resistant you also become; even while the pace of change in your world accelerates,” Jonny Evans writes for Computerworld. “The same is true for any mature industry. And the television industry faces big, big change, and big, big fear. Apple [AAPL] is coming, and TV is running scared.”
“Broadcasters are terrified,” Evans writes. “They don’t want to see control cede from a global cabal of disparate groups into the hands of a handful of firms based in Silicon Valley: Apple, Google and others.”
Evans writes, “They want to fight back. But don’t really know how. Stuck in the secure embrace of what they see as the status quo, they have difficulty letting go and allowing the power of change to inspire their next move.”
Much more in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Fred Mertz” for the heads up.]
Related articles:
Jefferies analyst went to Asia and thought he saw Apple iTV; expects next-gen iPhone with A6 and 4-4.3-inch display – March 13, 2012
Why the TV industry is vulnerable to Apple – March 5, 2012
Piper’s Munster on Apple iTV: ‘It will be the biggest thing in consumer electronics since the smartphone’ – March 1, 2012
It’s just a matter of time and they are done!
They should not forget the first Law of Nature …. ” The only constant is Change”.
The existence of Change is a given.
However, the Rate of Change is a variable.
There are no constants.
As Apple fans we like Apple products, but in our other areas of life we’re normal people with other interests. And, as much as we like Apple gear, we don’t want the world’s media controlled by a handful of corporations. We’re lured into the trap by shiny trinket-devices, which mesmerise so much of our private time that global forces gathering and encircling don’t bother us as long as the masses have electronic bread and circuses. As we play with our Macs/iPhones/iPads, I hope you guys can see where this is all leading.
” …we don’t want the world’s media controlled by a handful of corporations.”
Too late for that, I believe. That was true before Apple even got into media. In the case of Apple, at least their model of content delivery aligns more with what consumers want to pay and how they want to use it. At least it has in music.
“we don’t wanta the world’s media controlled by a handful of corportations”
WTF? I’m confused, who do you think controls it now? Those handful that control it now, control how, when, what, and how much you will pay for not only the content but the way you get it. There is no consumer control.
Can’t see what Apple is trying to do, give the consumer some form of control and freedom? Maybe you think they are only in it to control the world and it’s all about money. If so, you need to Think Different man.
Still have to deal with the issue of how to deliver the content, even if it is in hand. I know this is a stretch, but Apple has stretched industries in other areas. I would like to see Apple put all that money to work developing a nation-wide delivery system. Satellites? A high speed system available to buildings and mobil devices alike. Imagine a world without AT&T, Verizon, cable, etc. (Is that a John Lennon song?) Just do it.
” it’s about becoming the firm that’s synonymous with a consumer’s entertainment experience.”
I’m not convinced this should be putting any fright into any of the content providers, or even the cable distributors. It might impact the manufacturers of remotes, or certainly manage to bypass (please!) the insanity known as the ‘guide’ in most TV set or cable box menus.
As a person gets older, they are more likely to start acting conservatively. Progress only comes from the people who embrace change and by definition, conservatives fear change.
This site is full of postings from the fearful right and anyone who does not agree with their conservative fearful opinions must be a commie. There are many people who are not conservative and are also not communists. There are more than two points of view.
Isn’t communism the farthest right you can go on the political spectrum?
Sorry, my mistake. I always get politics backwards. Both sides are ridiculous.
….sooo right!
Uh, Conservatives do not fear change. They fear the actions of naive Progressives who believe all change is positive, and are stubbornly resistant to historical perspective and the easily predictable fallout from bad policy.
And quit projecting. Most Conservatives do Not go around calling Progressives “Communists”. We call you idiots.
You must be kidding. I see a lot of conservatives, on this very site calling anyone who appears to be to the left of Richard Nixon communists, socialists, marxists, idiots and worse EVERY FLIPPIN’ DAY!
Nixon was a bit of a lefty.
I DID say MOST. I’m willing to say there frothing idiots on the Right if you will admit the same for the Left. MOST of us share more ideas and ideals than we don’t. I just objected the broad sweeping characterization of Conservatives FEARING change. Allowing people to kill anyone stepping on their lawn is “Change”. There is good change and bad change. I have a right to resist a proposed new policy without being written off as simply being fearful. I WILL say that I am fearful of those who believe “Change” is magic bullet. Convince me a change will bring long term benefits and I’m right their with you.
And we progressives call you conservatives jerks, because you are blind and mean spirited. You stubborn refusal to even debate issues without name calling & fear mongering.
+1
Fair enough, Conservatives are always calling anyone who they don’t agree with a name of some sort other than what they are. If you call a person a name, it obviously will make them better.
It’s an Apple world.
Wouldn’t bother me a bit if Apple bought DirecTV or Dish Netwok or HughesNet and turned that into a media distribution system unlike anything we’ve seen before.
I’m still not sure how I ibroadcasting would help the consumer ultimately, and certainly not the tv media creation industry. I’m not holding my breath that it will happen any time soon.
I still am convinced that the iTV is not primarily a tv at all, but rather AirPlay equipped large displays. The plan will be to screen mirror from your idevice. Eventually your computer goes with you everywhere in your pocket and the desktop just needs to be an iCloud and AirPlay equipped dumb screen.
While we’re at it, the iPad mini screens aren’t for an iPad mini either. They’re for in-dash car systems to do the similar to the above.
I concur with that assessment.
The plan will be: Stream anything you want from the iTunes store for a set monthly fee…. any TV show one price, movies an additional price… possibly any network an additional. So imagine…. only the TV shows and movies you want for one monthly subscription fee. How does this help the content producer… he is no longer depending on which network Chooses to offer his show.
This means, anyone can produce a TV show and it lives and dies by the number of people who watches it… it is not the decision of a network executive it is the decision of the people willing to support it by
downloading or streaming…. without the middleman in the networks… the cost of producing a show is reduced… so for content producers this is a godsend your shows live and die by the quality of the show and the number of people they can find to support it… not which advertiser is willing to support it…. controversial shows no longer need to fear advertisers pulling out…. and as long as the show is popular enough to support its production it runs.
If you can’t see the trend you are not paying attention. Netflix and Google (through YouTube) are now funding the PRODUCTIONS themselves…not just enabling their transmission. Apple’s plans are pretty obvious. They are buying land in Oregon, Austin and of course across the road from their existing data center in North Carolina. OWNING the capabilities of say, Paramount or another production company and ALL their back catalog would be easy. Then modernize, digitize and distribute everything controlling the process from the beginning. With ties to Disney already, owning the production capability and bringing others along is not hard. Think this can’t be done? Look at Comcast/NBC Universal. A cable company, buys a broadcast and production entity. Note..that company is $30 billion. How much does Apple have in cash again?
Jeez. Fighting back would be so easy. The existing television industry controls content and will for the foreseeable future. Simply make access to said content easy and affordable. That’s all. Not rocket science.
Those of us who consume content want what we wan, when we want it, where we want it, and how we want it. If I want to see “Person of Interest”on my iPad in an outhouse in Botswana then I should be able to do that. We’re willing to pay we’re just not going to pay $10 an episode. When you make your content difficult to find we’ll pursue illegal means.
All the industry has to do is let go of its prehistoric business model. Apple understands this. Apple understands the frustration of the consumer. Every time the industry goes out of its way to clog things up, to tie up the Internet they make things easier for Apple.
We no longer meet in our living rooms at the times you specify anymore. We are severing the cable, and becoming highly mobile. Figure it out. It’s the 21st century.
————
The above text was dictated into an iPad third-generation.
Well said.
+1
Apple better change too. I tried to rent the movie “girl with the dragon tattoo” using my new apple tv in Australia for $7.99. Sorry but not available for another month. I switched to my US iTunes account where the movie is available now for $4.99, sorry you need a US credit card.
So I quit and loaded up XBMC on the apple tv, found the movie for free using a plugin and streamed it straight off the net for free. Apple lost $5 and I got to watch the movie in good quality.