Apple TV ‘skinny’ package likely to accelerate cord cutting

11 years ago

“Apple’s ambition to be a dominant player in television is expected to accelerate the unraveling of the pay-TV bundle,” Meg James and Paresh Dave report for The Los Angeles Times. “The tech giant is in negotiations with major television companies to offer a ‘skinny’ package of channels that would include ABC, CBS and Fox Broadcasting, according to people familiar with the matter who were not authorized to speak publicly. Apple wants to roll out the service in time for the new fall shows in September.”

“‘Apple remains one of the few companies in the world that has the potential to transform the TV industry, and we believe consumers are ready for a change,’ Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Brian White wrote recently in a research report,” James and Dave report. “Apple this month unveiled its deal to offer HBO Now, a $14.99-a-month Internet streaming service on Apple devices beginning next month. Its planned Web TV subscription service would cost customers about $30 a month, the people said.”

“Experts think that Apple’s advantage comes from its strong track record of developing products that have clean and user-friendly designs,” James and Dave report. “‘They do have this very loyal fan base and a great usability that’s not possible in the more fractured environments of other devices,’ said Field Garthwaite, chief executive of Iris.TV, a Los Angeles startup that builds video recommendation technology.”

Read more in the full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: We’re so ready for the right mix of programming and price! (Easier said than done, we know.)