Providing Market Intelligence for 40 Years

In The News

Apple TV Upgrade: Upside Limited Without Content

Apple has been working for some time on a cable killer, and is looking to combine broadcast and select cable networks for a cheaper, better-looking bundle. But that isn’t the extent of the company’s content ambitions: As Variety reported exclusively, the company has even made overtures to execs in Hollywood about producing its own original programming, with the goal of building out a production unit that could one day churn out TV shows or even movies.

But no Apple originals are in the foreseeable future, and negotiations with networks to license channels have been slow-moving, forcing the company to postpone the launch of the service until some time in 2016.

Without that content infusion, Apple TV is just another box — and an expensive one: Numerous leaks point to a base model launch price of $149.

That’s significantly more than the competition, which already has been eating Apple’s lunch with cheap boxes and streaming sticks. Roku, whose entry-level devices retail for just $50, sold 34% of all streaming devices in the U.S. in 2014. Apple TV’s market share was just 13%, according to data from Parks Associates, which also has sales of Google’s Chromecast streaming stick and Amazon’s Fire TV devices surpassing those of Apple’s hockey puck.

Consumers are voting with their wallets, argued Parks Associates research director Barbara Kraus: “If I just want to stream, I can do that with a $35 stick.”

From the article "Apple TV Upgrade: Upside Limited Without Content" by Janko Roettgers.

Previously In The News

Streamer eyes yardage as 68% of US households watch NFL

The extent of the opportunity for the soon to be announced NFL+ app, which opens the possibility that all games in America’s most popular sport, could be streamed direct-to-consumer, has been revealed...

Password sharing could be costing SVODs billions each year

Password sharing is estimated to result in billions of dollars in missed revenue for both SVOD and pay-TV over time, and the problem is getting worse. For its part, the US cable industry is expected t...

August Adds Wireless HD Video Doorbell to Smart Home Line

The wireless chime included with View also separates the doorbell from the pack. "A chime is usually an add-on extra, something you'd have to pay extra for," said Brad Russell, an analyst at Dallas...

AR in Harry Potter Game Is Next Best Thing to Real Magic

"Since Pokémon Go first launched in 2016, we've seen a number of other AR games launch as well," said Kristen Hanich, senior analyst at Parks Associates. However, none have risen to the same level...