Apple's Live TV Service Delayed to 2016?

Apple's negotiations with networks for a live TV service have been progressing slowing, delaying its expected launch to 2016, reports Bloomberg.

The company wanted to introduce this year a live TV service delivered via the Internet, but is now aiming for 2016, said people familiar with Apple’s plans. Talks to license programming from TV networks such as those owned by CBS Corp. and 21st Century Fox Inc. are progressing slowly, some of the people said. Apple also doesn’t have the computer network capacity in place to ensure a good viewing experience, said some of the people, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private.

As previously reported, Apple still intends to unveil a new Apple TV at a September 9th event; however, it will not debut the TV service which would have coincided with the beginning of the fall TV season.


The main negotiation issue has been the price of content. Apple apparently wants to offer a package of popular channels for $40/month or about half the average cable bill in the United States. TV programmers want to get more money for new services, not less. While Apple's entry to market has been appealing to media conglomerates, finding the right mix of channels at the right price has been difficult.

Another issue has been creating a network that will ensure glitch-free viewing throughout the United States. The company has been building out its own capacity but still doesn't have enough to support a major rollout. It's possible that it could use Akamai's content distribution network of 170,000 servers to assist with streaming live television.

We'll let you know if any more details leak ahead of Apple's press event in September. Please follow iClarified on Twitter, Facebook, or RSS for updates.

Read More