With the announcement of the Amazon Fire TV and the leak of the alleged Android TV, all of the major players have (or soon will have) a TV offering. There’s been a lot of talk about how similar the products are, but those similarities are for good reason; what is more interesting to me are […]
Not so Fast on that Apple TV SDK
Dan Frommer is sure an AppleTV App Store is on the way: Apple TV owners just got a bunch more channels: Vevo, the Weather Channel, more from Disney, and Smithsonian. This follows a recent update that added HBO Go and ESPN apps, and represents a continued acceleration of new content being added to Apple TV. […]
In Chrome Versus Android, Chrome Wins
John Gruber: So this is weird. Back when Chromecast was announced, I wrote that it doesn’t do something that Google made it seem like it did — stream video directly from your phone (or tablet) like AirPlay. But then it ends up it was capable of something like AirPlay, but it required a third-party app, […]
Understanding Google
The surest route to befuddlement in the tech industry is comparing a vertical player, like Apple, with a horizontal one, like Google. Vertical players typically monetize through hardware, only serve a subset of users, and any services they provide are exclusive to their devices. Horizontal players, on the other hand, monetize through subscriptions or ads, […]
More content for Apple TV
AllThingsD: Apple’s TV hobby just got a bit bigger: Apple has added five new content providers to its sort-of set-top box, notably Time Warner’s HBO Go and Disney’s WatchESPN. Also available as of today: Satellite TV service Sky News, anime subscription service Crunchyroll, and concert subscription service Qello. Apple TV owners who have access to […]
Additional Notes on TV
This is a follow-up to my three-part series on TV: Part 1: The Cord-Cutting Fantasy. Getting only the content you want without paying for everything is a fantasy. Pay TV is socialism that works. Part 2: Why TV has resisted disruption. Great content is differentiated, has high barriers to entry, and depends on networks. Part […]
My Apple TV Prediction
I wrapped up my three-part series on TV yesterday, and in case it wasn’t clear, my conclusion was a pretty specific prediction about the Apple TV: Imagine a $99 (or $129) “console” with an optional $49 controller and an App Store. That’s a lot of potential escapism, and a lot of user attention. It’s a […]
The Jobs TV Does
This is Part 3 of a three-part series on what changes, if any, may be coming to TV TV, as I have recounted in the last two articles, is as firmly entrenched as an incumbent can be. The idea that you can cut the cord and simply watch the shows you currently want to watch […]
Steve Jobs on television
I’ve written two pieces this week on television, with the intent of exploring what changes, if any, may be coming: The cord-cutting fantasy examined why cutting the cord yet keeping the shows you watch (i.e. unbundling) is unrealistic. Why TV has resisted disruption explored the strategic reasons why TV remains strong I’m working on Part […]