Apple arguing to have iTunes TV show prices cut?
updated 10:45 am EST, Tue January 26, 2010
Executives 'frustrated' with video sales
Apple is pressuring American TV networks to accept lower episode prices at the iTunes Store, sources for the Financial Times say. In particular the company is said to be bringing the topic in up in meetings with media executives, which have allegedly taken place over the course of recent months. Apple's ideal price cut is said to be from $1.99 down to $1, making TV about as expensive as music.
For Apple cheaper prices would serve a dual purpose, first of all invigorating video sales through iTunes, which are said to be disappointing so far. Analysts have typically suggested that they represent a small fraction of overall iTunes revenue. This may be because the prices for some shows make iTunes copies as expensive as DVD or Blu-ray box sets, without the same flexibility in how they are watched.
A price cut is also said to be instrumental in Apple's tablet plans, which have so far been thought to revolve around e-books. Tablets are however a better platform for watching video than iPhones and iPods, which at best have a 3.5-inch screen. Most reports have put the size of Apple's tablet at 10 inches, on par with a netbook.
TV executives say that Apple will truly begin campaigning for cheaper episodes after the tablet is unveiled. "They know how to push," one senior media executive comments. "It's not a push, it's a suggestion," he adds, except that "it [iTunes pricing] comes up in all the conversations."
Networks are believed to be worried, however, that they could suffer the fate of the music industry, which agreed to 99 cent iTunes songs in 2003 only to find that people bought singles instead of albums. Companies are also alleged to be resisting the idea of an iTunes TV subscription, which might cost $30 a month and offer an assortment of shows from different channels. Disney, CBS, News Corp., Time Warner and Viacom are all claimed to have been approached, but hesitant because iTunes could draw people away from conventional pay services, which have held out in spite of a recession.
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Works for me but how.
The family only watches 60 Minutes, Weather, TCM, Football and a large movie library on Apple TV. We are looking for a way to ditch the cable connection. Unfortunately they also supply the internet high speed connection. What is the work around?