“Apple is reportedly planning to launch a streaming-video TV service, with 25 channels in all, anchored by major broadcasters, including Disney’s ABC, Viacom’s CBS and New Corp.’s Fox,” Tim Mullaney writes for CNBC. “The move is a huge shot across the bow of cable TV operators, since the service would be a big boost to a fast-growing but poorly understood industry phenomenon—cord-cutting.”
“Cord-cutting is when a household decides to get its video, including TV, over the Internet rather than from traditional cable or satellite TV providers,” Mullaney writes. “As it becomes more common, it stands to reshuffle household video budgets and viewing patterns and remake the power relationships between companies that make programming and those that distribute it. And with the power goes the money, in the form of fees paid by consumers or the money that distributors pay to programmers.”
“What will all this mean? Will consumers save money? And why is the change accelerating now?” Mullaney writes. “Here are… 8 key questions.”
1. How much do people pay for cable?
2. How many people are cutting the cord?
3. Who else is pushing cord-cutting?
4. What are cable companies doing about it?
5. Does cord-cutting save consumers money?
6. How many more people are likely to cut the cord soon?
7. What’s the future of my TV?
8. How would this service impact profits in the technology and media business?
The answers are in the full article here.
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