[opendtv] Re: Apple in Talks with Comcast About Streaming-TV Service - WSJ.com

  • From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: "opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Sun, 30 Mar 2014 23:29:54 +0000

Craig Birkmaier wrote:

> Sorry Bert, Apple will not be selling boxes to Comcast. They don't
> roll that way, nor do they need to.
>
> Comcast may sell Apple boxes in their stores just like AT&T does with
> Apple and Samsung phones. Apple will sell this device via their
> physical and online stores, and through authorized retailers.

This is just conjecture on your part, but okay. Apple sold their iPhones only 
with AT&T, for the first several years. So potentially, possibly, they could be 
trying that same arrangement with Comcast, for the STB role. An important 
difference being, Apple would be the only "outside" STB maker for Comcast, not 
one of many, as was the case with AT&T.

But that's conjecture. A plain read of the article would imply otherwise. 
Either way doesn't make a lot of difference.

> And drop the collusion characterizations. The content congloms sell
> to everyone, but they reserve the exclusive stuff for "the bundle" and
> let the MVPDs send them checks.

You have a problem calling a spade a spade? Steve Jobs tried to get access to 
exclusive TV content from the congloms at first, when introducing AppleTV. Big 
media splash. He couldn't make that approach work, so he ended up having to 
demonstrate AppleTV showing the same content you can get FOTA.

So now, collude with the other party instead, the MVPD. That's what's happening 
here. Not sure how you can miss it. Apple can't acquire exclusive content 
direct from the owners? Then get it from an existing walled garden, of course.

Once again, the content congloms *already* sell some of their exclusive, 
non-FOTA content, through non-MVPD media, such as Hulu Plus. As much as you 
feel compelled to pretend it isn't so. This Apple attempt can only reinforce 
the traditional MVPD walls, certainly it wouldn't help bring them down. 
Consumers have to do that.

Bert

 
 
----------------------------------------------------------------------
You can UNSUBSCRIBE from the OpenDTV list in two ways:

- Using the UNSUBSCRIBE command in your user configuration settings at 
FreeLists.org 

- By sending a message to: opendtv-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word 
unsubscribe in the subject line.

Other related posts: