Apple's Rigid Negotiating Tactics Cost Us 'Skinny Bundles' For Apple TV, Says Report (thenextweb.com)

An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Next Web: According to a new report from The Wall Street Journal, the reason we don't have actual TV channels on the Apple TV is because the company tried to strong-arm networks -- and failed. Apple's Senior Vice President Eddy Cue is said to have taken the wrong approach. In one meeting, he reportedly told TV executives that "time is on my side." Cue is also accused of bluffing executives by claiming other networks -- specifically Disney and Fox -- were already signed up. The company also refused to show off the Apple TV interface, or "sketch it on the back of a napkin," as one media executive requested. Cue also tried to strike hard bargains, says WSJ. He reportedly asked that Disney put off the royalties Apple would have to pay for several years. Those 'skinny bundles' we heard so much about were what Apple was planning to build its TV experience around, too. In 2015, a bundle consisting of Fox, ESPN and Disney content was conceptualized (and priced at $30), but no agreements were ever signed. In an effort to create more original programming, Apple is scheduled to release its 'Planet of the Apps' TV show about app developers next year.

Comments

Opposite is true, AppleTV is great for TV

[SuperKendall]

All of the things you mentioned you can play on an AppleTV. Most have AppleTV apps, the few that do not (like Amazon Prime) I can if I wish Airplay from phone to the TV...

It's been especially nice for some things like HBO Go and Starz, because there is a good AppleTV app I could fire up to watch content - but the absolute best aspect by far is that I can sign up for service on those apps through Apple as subscriptions, which means I can *easily* cancel them and just buy in month intervals... HBO bored me by the time Game Of Thrones was over, so I just cut off the subscription until something compelling leads my to subscribe again...

In that way Apple actually has provided the "thin bundles" they wanted, only even thinner - because most channels have individual AppleTV apps now or are building them, so I can truly pay just for content I find interesting, for the period of time that suits me (in monthly increments). I could get an MLB app too if I cared about baseball and get every game instead of the cable bundles which come with restrictions or don't offer all games...