Apple is planning to jump on board with the cable giant Comcast, in an attempt to remain relevant in a niche that is quickly passing them by. Comcast has been in the news a lot lately for their collaborations, such as their controversial purchase of Time Warner.
Apple has struggled for some time to break into the television niche. While there is a certain measure of success when considering iTunes, the platform is primarily used for free content like podcasts, or music sharing. They have never quite managed to take the entertainment world entirely, and past products like Apple TV have been a flop.
Now Chromecast is making waves, Netflix is more popular than ever, Amazon Prime is beginning to offer exclusive content, and Hulu is filling the market for current TV access. Not to mention the many networks that now support full episodes streaming on their network.
But the company isn’t giving up. They are now looking to release a streaming cable service through Comcast. It would take over the current trend of traditional cable boxes, instead utilizing a cloud service that could potentially be a game changer for cable TV as a whole.
Right now, everything is still early days. No real plans have been formalized, and the general talks are ongoing. But it is hard to imagine this not taking place, with Comcast taking over every corner of the market possible. With TV becoming almost entirely online these days, many of us not even bothering to keep basic channels, Comcast could very well be facing extinction in spite of their monopoly.
Apple would be the perfect fit for XFinity. They are both voracious, all-consuming market monsters that frown on third-party accessibility and content. They are both using shaky legal maneuvering to try and force users into using what they want them to use, and their way. And both companies infinitely piss off the very people who still use their products.
The only difference is Comcast works to make it so they have no choice. Apple is good at creating innovative products that are top of the line, enticing users with quality.
It could be both a dangerous and amazing partnership. Funny how often those two go together.
Source: WSJ
