Apple rumored to be in talks to acquire German HDTV maker Loewe - Page 3

"SoundJam was purchased and turned into iTunes in a heartbeat"

Wasn't that a drumbeat? :)

This makes perfect sense. All the rumblings and actions being taken do point to Apple getting into the TV biz. It definitely does remind me of all the hoopla going on before the iPhone was finally released. That being said, I agree with those who say that the only real differentiator will be software and content related. Great industrial design will help and there'll be millions who would buy a dumb panel with the Apple logo slapped on it, but for the long-term viability of an Apple HDTV set, it'll be all about how the interface accesses an expanded iTunes content base integrated with iCloud.

I've felt the TV world has been broken for years. I finally got fed up and ditched the normal service after going through standard cable (Cox), satellite (DirecTV), and Verizon's FiOS TV. I just have the Apple TV now with a Netflix account but it's really not much more than an online rental service of which there are many. It's really not a "traditional" TV. But since I find the great majority of TV programming to be trash, I don't mind the limited capabilities. I've never been much of a TV watcher at all. The only thing I really miss is live sports but I'm not the sports fan that I used to be either so it's no big deal.

I'm not sure what the ideal TV experience would be. I do like how the Apple TV is integrated with all the iDevices and Macs at home with iTunes and AirPlay but I'm sure there'll be more to it than that in the future. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what Apple has in store. I don't think there's any doubt that Apple will get into it in a big way. We just don't know when. Apple isn't going to sit by idly while everyone else like Google, Samsung, Microsoft, LG, Sony, etc. continue to stake out a piece of the emerging digital (or "smart") TV market.

I don't think anyone even knows what they're really going after. They all seem to be flailing and throwing whatever they can at the wall and hope that something sticks and takes off. Apple will have to define what that something is. Even if Apple does, they won't catch everyone off guard like they did with the iPhone in the mobile phone market. It'll  have to be a long and slow climb. I'm all for it and am ready for it. It'll be like the final piece of a puzzle in the home. But I'm in no hurry to complete it.

Television screens on internet media players?

Internet media players in televisions?

Think convergence.  What goes?  What arrives?

Could long term technological licenses be involved?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Splash-reverse 

They are one of TWO TV companies with a awfully-designed TV IMO, aesthetically. Loewe and B&O. I hope if Apple indeed bought this company, they will change their design direction to be much more widely accepted look much like the likes of Panasonic and Toshiba 2012 models or Samsung (ek!) and LG 2011 models. At least maybe Sony HX 2009-10 models. Loewe and B&O, even the unknown Chinese TV models/brands starting to look more prettier the last time I check.

I disagree. Look as an example the Loewe Invisio -model. Almost completely made of glass! I don´t know if there is a commercial product available (yet). I would thin this is a perfect math! Just add the Apple logo.....

If such a deal would take off, it would certainly administer a significant blow to Samsung's TV business (more than a set-top aTV box, which would work WITH Samsung TVs).

I still do believe that Apple is just working with major TV suppliers to incorporate (or allow attachment in a recess ) of the appleTV, negociating strict compliance with e.g.,

• remote controls, or with Apple's iOS remote control strategy (e.g., a smart iPad app, as for Loewe, a far cry from the horrible GUI found in the Samsung SmartTVs; 
• CEC, where the aTV controls all the inputs to the TV, including the attached devices (instead of vice versa).

The reason why we apparently haven't seen patent applications to this effect may be that Apple wants a head start. There may already be ways in which Apple can prevent straightforward copying/clongig, e.g., using their development ecosystem.

Ha ha, that would be a great slogan.

A quick query in the German patent databases reveals that Loewe Opta AG indeed holds or has applied to some patents that you would consider as necessary for the kind of products Apple is likely to offer when entering the telly market. I'm not at all an expert in patent matters, though.

The stuff is all in German, you might find equivalent applications at the European Patent office in English.

DE102009059281B4 covers the communication between an "entertainment electronics device" and a "communication electronics device", so basically your telly and your iOS device. EED sends EPG data to the CED (apparently via an intermediary device), nicely wrapped in XML; CED with touch control allows you to navigate, browse the program, probably preview (hard to decipher that patent lingo) and control the EED by pushing the symbol for the show you want to see towards the telly (which somehow knows the CED's location). 

DE102010038159A1 covers "displays with adjustable transparency" (as an "Offenlegungsschrift", document of disclosure, it's not a granted patent yet, though). The display is characterised by: transparent liquid crystals; organic diodes (OLEDs); polarizer to control intensity of light going through the transparent display; ability to control transparency for specific light waves lengths (allows adjustment to different environments); and some more stuff.

EP000002249559A3 covers regular expressions for EPGs. 

A three docs were published in 2012. 

A Loewe spokesperson has denied this report.

Quote:

Originally Posted by animatedude 

in my holy opinion, and i repeat holy...the Apple Cinema Display design is much better than everything they have on this Loewe's products page....that's why i have ZERO problems with the rumors of the upcoming Apple TV set being exactly like the Apple Cinema Display only bigger...i say bring it on!

Well I must admit, I have never seen nor heard Loewe's gears in person but I am giving the benefit of the doubt to Apple engineers and designers.

I am impressed however by the pictures of the gears.  If they sound anything like Paradigm Studios or JM Labs speaker gears or Velodyne DD subs and have the picture qualities of the Samsung tv screens, then add Apple advanced TV platform with beautiful and easy to use interface and you have a revolutionized industry on you hands.

Note that it's not just the external design but also quality of the patented electronics and software inside.  Not to mention the current organization of the company, the fact that they make a limited set of products that Apple wants instead of being huge like Sony.

I look forward to having 100% Apple gear for audio/video.

According to a report on The Next Web, "German TV maker Loewe has today officially denied rumours of a $113 million buyout, with a company spokesperson stating that the report has “absolutely nothing to it.”

There goes another Apple TV rumor - come on AI, don't become another DigiTimes 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rogifan 


Well if th $99 box can't give me what I have with DirecTV I have no reason to buy it. TV is not that complicated. My DirecTV box is very easy to use. When I had Dish Networks it was the same (though they didn't have all the content DirecTV does). I'm not sure what Apple is going to perfect or what Jobs thought he cracked.
Now there are those who would prefer to just pay for the shows/ channels they want rather than paying for a package full of channels they never want. If that's what Apple is attempting to crack then it's a whole lot more than perfecting the UI. Then we're talking about content and distribution. And I'm skeptical that Apple will be able to break the cable/satellite control of TV. TV is not the same as music was back in the early 00's when people were using file sharing to illegally acquire music. I can't see TV networks or movie studios bending over for Apple just because, well, it's Apple.

I think your summed this debate up best here ...

"I'm not sure what Apple is going to perfect or what Jobs thought he cracked."

To which I'd say ... "Exactly!"

I am sure the exact same comment was made pre iPhone and iPad from those already familiar with the then current phone and tablet markets.

My point is it may well be a lot of fun and enlightening when we see it (what ever it is)...  having said that of course even when we see it (assuming there is an it) most won't 'get it' at first just as they didn't with iPhone and iPad and heck I could add GUI to that mix back in 1984 ...  "What use is a mouse?"  

Quote:

Originally Posted by Toruk 
A Loewe spokesperson has denied this report.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rogifan 
Well it was a nice thought for the 12 hours or so that it lasted. Sigh.

Huh, guess I was wrong, then.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tallest Skil 
In other news, small German TV manufacturer's stock price skyrockets for a month or so.

 

Idiot speculators make money.

That certainly didn't give them much time at all, did it? 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rogifan 
Well if th $99 box can't give me what I have with DirecTV I have no reason to buy it.

You'd rather pay whatever a month for the rest of eternity than $99 once and then only for the shows and news you want?

Then you have a very, very different box than any I've ever seen or used.

This is something at which they excel.

Yeah, no one downloads TV shows without paying for service. That certainly doesn't happen.

I can't see them having a choice. They either do it or they're left out, just like every other deal Apple has made for the past decade.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rogifan 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Toruk 

A Loewe spokesperson has denied this report.

Well it was a nice thought for the 12 hours or so that it lasted. Sigh.

Maybe the discussions were about a joint venture or licensing agreement of some kind.

Sometimes those work better for both parties than a buyout.

Oh yeah..A.I. be trollin.

Quote:

Originally Posted by markbyrn 

According to a report on The Next Web, "German TV maker Loewe has today officially denied rumours of a $113 million buyout, with a company spokesperson stating that the report has “absolutely nothing to it.”

 

There goes another Apple TV rumor - come on AI, don't become another DigiTimes 

Oh well, so much for that idea.  It would have been a good deal for both companies but competition is also good.  The Apple design and engineering teams must rise to the occasion.

Time will tell.

Do you remember when iPad was a rumor? And when it was introduced? Many, if not the majority of people who commented couldn't understand why anyone, other than rabid Apple fanboys and girls, would buy it. The question was, why do I need another internet device? I have a smartphone, laptop, etc. 

I seriously doubt that Apple would enter the TV market unless they have a highly compelling product. It will be interesting to see what it's all about when the time comes, assuming it does. Which according to the previous post, it will not.

Edit: Deleted and resubmitted -- screwed over by the new AI forum UI

If Apple wants to be a content provider and compete with cable then they would simply buy Dish Network or Direct TV. Dish has valuable spectrum that Apple could use as leverage with the telecoms or use it themselves.