“[Apple’s] elusive over-the-top streaming-TV product has yet to materialize, although it appears still very much in the works,” Andrew Tonner writes for The Motley Fool. “Unfortunately for those who hoped Apple might roll out the service as part of its customary fall product launch cycle, recent reports claim that Apple’s streaming service will remain off the shelf until next year.”
“The recent reports documenting Apple’s TV-related headaches force you to wonder whether Apple’s TV service will really matter, assuming it ever arrives,” Tonner writes. “Consider that TV subscriptions declined for the first time ever last year. Furthermore, with the emergence of over-the-top ‘skinny bundles’ from the likes of DISH Network and Sony and non-cable alternatives such as Netflix, the cable industry seems likely to evolve in the coming year.”
Apple, with its massive installed user base, could help reverse the trend in short order,” Tonner writes. “However, if Apple must make significant concessions in terms of either price or number of channels included to coalesce enough industry buy-in to eventually launch the service, will the somewhat compromised service be a genuine draw to consumers?”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: With 80% of U.S. households still up for grabs, this race has barely even started yet.
SEE ALSO:
Outsold by Amazon’s Fire TV, Apple TV slips to fourth place in U.S. streaming device sales – August 21, 2015
5 major Apple TV leaks reveal radical overhaul – August 20, 2015
Apple’s next-gen Apple TV to cost $149? – August 19, 2015
Will Apple TV kill cable? – August 19, 2015
Apple’s Internet TV: How many TV networks will make the cut? – August 18, 2015
The next-gen Apple TV’s marquee feature – August 18, 2015
What September’s new iOS 9-based Apple TV is likely to deliver – August 17, 2015
Yes.
Nope. Hey Tim, fire Eddie Cue. It’s your job!
+1 thousand
It’s worth it even if you have a 2nd gen Apple TV.
Tube is more important.
Really?
Just like Wikipeadia, don’t you think that market is just about sown up? It’s a position for YouTube to loose, as apposed for Apple to take. Apple will have to come at it from the side with a compatible market mechanism. Apple TV and podcasting is the only thing that couple possibly gain any traction.
you can always use your old AppleTV on another tv in your house… When the new one comes out, I’m retiring the old one to the bedroom tv
Yep
Apple TV is a great little device. It just needs a more frequent refresh cycle to keep consumers interested.
The ability to play content from NAS would also be nice. The closest solution at this point in time is a Raspberry Pi running RPiForkedDaapd.
> The closest solution at this point in time is a Raspberry Pi running RPiForkedDaapd.
Having it put that way, RPi must be taking the world by storm 😉
This product from VBox announced over a year ago fits your requirements. 😀
http://www.rapidtvnews.com/2014072234605/vbox-claims-world-first-with-whole-home-live-tv-dvr-to-nas.html#axzz3jrqBN81a
The Motley Fool has NEVER been right about anything. Ever. MDN is a hit whore for ever including the bile from this investment hoax machine.
Second that notion. I wonder how many millions or billions “the Fool” has cost the unwary and ill-educated in making bad investment decisions (while enriching the MF in the process).
I may be weird but I watch zero TV. Can’t even imagine how I would fit it in. Occasional movies is all. If not for the kids and kids channels we’d cancel cable completely.
That’s You. There are others in the universe who feel differently.Who have different needs. Sometimes. no kids, too. I’d love to cancel cable, however. I myself have no need of reality shows or sports. We should all be able to pay for only what we want, although I realize that the argument is is that it’snot economically feasible. So we long to cut the cord- as it constantly gets thicker and tighter….
I also watch no TV but my wife occasionally watches live news on TV. She won’t let go of the cable contract
Yes, if Apple forgets trying to please content people, it never works, see Sony.
Also Yes if Apple fills out lots of capabilities beyond TV, such as gaming, full room Facetiming, wall screen apps that allow for more social app use (as in multiple people in room seeing the same thing), i.e. maps, browsing, gaming.
Apple should turn TVs into wall computers the same way they turned phones into pocket computers and watches into wrist computers.
Thinking of wall screens just as TVs is missing the point of the opportunity here.
Anyone who asks the question posed in the headline above has never used an Apple TV. I’m on my second Apple TV, and I’ve had one for almost five years. My Apple TV has been the most used Apple device in my home next to my iPhone. Enough said.
I agree. I have three around the house. They’re great for streaming movies from iTunes, AirPlaying content from our iOS devices, serving as a gateway for future Siri HomeKit integration, using as a consolidated source for other streaming video services, playing music throughout the home. Even if the video content suppliers never come on board, it will remain a primary media controller in our house.
The potential for Apple TV is actually quite large and will only get better over time. More and more content providers are realizing that internet streaming is the way to go, and much cheaper for people to access their content through the internet. Smart TVs have dropped in price significantly, and the Apple TV is a really awesome accessory.
In addition, you have the ability to stream your own content from your Mac or Windows PC running iTunes, iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. The AirPlay streaming for video and audio is a huge bonus.
With 4K just starting, Apple TV could capitalize on this market, and I would hope that Apple does so as soon as possible.
Apple TV is a great accessory to any home, and at $69, it’s cheap enough for anyone to afford. I highly recommend it. 🙂
You bet its worth it !
Is that a reference to the Aeon in FFX?
This is a very strange title for an article.
I have two AppleTVs and they’re great. I can view my movie library, stream NetFlix and HBONow, as well as many other things. And they cost only $59 each. Even without the paid streaming, I enjoy it.
Could it be better? Sure. When Apple expands it capabilities, I will upgrade to a newer model. (This reminds me of what I have been doing with computers over the past 25 years, as well as biannual upgrades of the iPhone and iPad. Is an older model “even worth having?” If someone is of the mentality that the latest version of something suddenly turns the previous model into a piece of junk, chances are that they are still trying to outgrow their teenage years.
I have 4 Apple TVs yet after getting iPhone 6plus I never use them anymore. The 6plus is a disruptive little beast.
Remember all those rumors of people being quoted saying things like “apple is experimenting with how glass curves around the body” and everyone assumed it was the watch. Well…I’ve learned a lot about things like Oculus Rift lately and was thinking, what if the next iteration of Apple TV and all the rumors of an actual television are actually wrapped up into a VR device?
Whether or not you’re ready to admit it, VR done right is fucking awesome. It has endless possibilities.
Computing: Your monitor can be a virtual room full of enormous monitors you look around through. You can have notifications display on a central location in a floating panel. The entire web can be transformed into a virtual world rather than archaic 2D websites currently resembling paper. Instead of commuting to work, everyone can work from home and meet up in the virtual office.
Movies: imagine movies being shot in 360-degree 3D where you’re in the scene and can look around.
Games: holy hell, have you seen these on YouTube? Even better, have you experienced them yourself?
Education: realistic simulations can be applied to nearly any profession where you work with your hands.
It’s really not my job to convince you to like VR, and if you lack the foresight to see its potential and its future in computing (and sadly, if Apple lacks that foresight), then prepare to be blown away as you become irrelevant.
I seriously hope Apple has been working on this and are years into the R&D. I WILL be buying Oculus Rift, and probably some competing VR sets. I WANT an Apple experience for VR. They’re the only ones who will do it with respect for the users.
I would rather have Apple shock the world proactively than wait until they are years behind and try to play catch up after all the startups have been acquired by Microsoft, Facebook, and Google, and the good ideas are patented like crazy.
Seriously… Oculus Rift runs on Windows. I’m going to of course use a Mac with a Windows partition, but how many other people are going to buy new Windows PC’s just for Oculus when they might have otherwise bought a Mac.
You might think this is stupid now, but that’s only because the consumer version has not yet been released. But I PROMISE you, the future of computing, gaming, and entertainment is about to take one of the most revolutionary steps since its inception, and Apple needs to do more than watch it happen around them.