Apple Stock News
Last week, Apple announced that it would offer an unbundled version of the HBO service directly to customers via its Apple TV set-top. This does not appear to be the end of Apple’s television efforts, however, as the Wall Street Journal reported that the company is in talks with programmers to offer a slimmed-down bundle of network channels to customers this fall. The service would have about 25 channels, much less than the 300 or so traditional cable companies include, and would work across all of Apple’s iOS operated devices, including iPhones and iPads, as well as the Apple TV set-top boxes.
Apple has been talking to Walt Disney Co, CBS Corp, and Twenty-First Century Fox Inc and other media companies to offer a skinny bundle with well-known channels. This bundle will leave off many of the smaller networks that are included in the basic cable packages, which media companies have been reluctant to let happen in the past. However, they are now negotiating and seem to have accepted that it will happen, as younger viewers clearly prefer streaming services now and have been increasingly cutting the chord the last few years.
The HBO service will become available directly to subscribers of the Apple TV set-top boxes for $14.99 a month, beginning in April. According to the WSJ, Apple plans to announce the service in June and want to announce it in September. It also aims to have a price between $30 to $40 a month. With a skinny bundle of only 25 channels, the Apple service will be able to include only must-have networks, which will attract young young people who do not subscribe to traditional pay TV packages.
