Apple has long been rumored to be developing a web TV streaming service. Recent reports, however, have claimed that the company has abandoned the idea due to difficulties negotiating with networks.
With AT&T having recently launched DirecTV Now and Hulu’s upcoming streaming service, the idea of a streaming service from Apple is something that doesn’t seem too wild.
With the streaming industry the way that it is, would you pay for it? If so, how much?
The idea of a web TV streaming service from Apple was first rumored in 2015 and expected to launch alongside the all-new tvOS Apple TV. As that launch came and went, however, the web TV service was nowhere to be found.
Jump ahead to the end of last year, AT&T launched its own streaming service in DirecTV Now. While the service has been met with some bugs, it’s a strong example of what a web TV service could be. It offers apps on tvOS and tvOS with an interface that would be familiar to anyone that’s used a TV guide before.
DirecTV Now also offers a strong channel lineup, though a point of contention with many has been its lack of local channels and lack of CBS. Hulu, on the other hand, is also planning a web TV service. According to Hulu’s CEO, CBS will be a part of its streaming platform, as will the other big networks.
A first-party solution for web TV streaming from Apple, however, would offer several benefits over solutions from AT&T and Hulu. For one, Apple’s web TV service would presumably be integrated with the company’s TV app and Siri. With Siri support especially, users would be able to immediately jump a specific channel or program, while TV app integration would provide easy access to seeing a channel guide and the information. We declared earlier this year that there’s no clear winner in the TV wars and perhaps Apple could secure that title.
At this point, it’s unclear if Apple is even working on a web TV service, but it’s fun to speculate. Eddy Cue has remarked in the past that he doesn’t feel that Apple needs to build a streaming TV service because with the tvOS App Store, networks can build their own apps and share them. With DirecTV Now and Hulu’s solution, however, Apple is likely looking for that web TV service to further boost its ‘Services’ sector.
Would you subscribe to an Apple streaming TV service? If so, how much would you pay? Let us know in the poll and in the comments.