‘New’ Apple TV this autumn
March 17, 2015
Apple is set to relaunch Apple TV this autumn and is in talks with ABC, CBS and Fox to bring around 25 channels to the service.
The service will be available across all devices powered by Apple’s iOS operating system, including iPhones, iPads and Apple TV set-top boxes, the WSJ reports.
The news comes just a couple of weeks after the company announced a deal with HBO to bring its on-demand streaming app to Apple TV, its set-top box, next month, and cut the price of the service from $99 to $69.
Apple has been talking to Walt Disney, CBS, 21st Century Fox and other media companies to offer a “skinny” bundle with well-known channels like CBS, ESPN and FX, leaving out the many smaller networks in the standard cable TV package. Apple, which is aiming to price the new service at about $30 to $40 a month, plans to announce the service in June and launch it in September, the newspaper said.
Apple is not in talks with NBCUniversal, owner of NBC and cable channels like USA and Bravo, because of a falling-out between Apple and NBCUniversal parent company Comcast. Apple and Comcast were in early-stage discussions last year to offer a streaming-television service that would allow Apple set-top boxes to bypass congestion on the web.