I have always wondered why Apple have never picked up a TV/Movie Studio along the way. They could easily snap up Sony Pictures and have access to a massive back catalogue of TV and movie content plus ongoing and future productions.
Nowhere does the article explain the headline "Dish Network in talks to merge with T-Mobile US, could pose challenge to Apple TV service".
Pardon my ignorance, but how would this pose a challenge to Apple outside of Dish already being a sat company???
Probably because of Sling TV but mostly because of the clicks the article will get. If you have ever watched The Big Lebowski, Appleinsider is like Walter, everything has something to do with Nam, or in the case of Appleinsider, to do with Apple.
Those VRADs are already fed by fiber. I think a single VRAD (video ready access device) can support 192 subscribers. They are fed by a gigabit fiber line from the hub in the central office. When at&t was building out U-verse in my town we were turning up two or three VRADs a day for a several months. So if you consider fiber to be a landline then yes. The important thing to know is that that last mile to the subscriber’s house is THE most expensive part of the deal in terms of conditioning and maintenance over the long haul.
Apple branched out into maps because Google was withholding features from their iOS equivalent like turn-by-turn directions. It has been rumored that Google wanted more access to personal data than Apple was inclined to give and Google was holding features as leverage. It wasn't until Apple Maps was released that Google suddenly brought those features up to par.
I disagree that Google Maps was pushed aside for the reasons offered. IMO Apple's plan to replace Google Maps had begun as far back as at least 2009 if not earlier. That's when they began scooping up location-focused companies like PlaceBase and Poly9. The "Google wanted to track you and Apple saved us" meme was a chance to kick a competitor on the way out with a planted rumor from an unofficial "anonymous source with knowledge of the situation".
I don't at all doubt that Google would have liked access to anonymized location and speed data like they do with Google traffic. I doubt Google wouldn't have liked the maps app to be labeled "powered by Google Maps" too. Absolutely two believable points, they make sense. I also have little doubt that with Apple planning their own maps they would decline both requests. At the same time it's silly to think Google was unaware of Apple's map-building and their eventual replacement. Heck with dozens of engineers going back and forth between the two they each know a whole lot more about the other than they let on in public.
But the rumor that Apple was held hostage, stuck between a rock and a hard place, and it was all Google's fault for forcing their hand with demands for your private information is bunk IMHO. I think Apple was building their own in-house platform no matter what Google did or didn't do. It was just another straightforward instance of Apple replacing a favored 3rd party supplier/partner when they found value in doing so.
I think there is far more value in new content than a library. Media is driven by new content, Apple could leverage it's size with enticing production companies to bring content directly to Apple and directly to consumers bypassing networks and studios. Let production companies take the risk and a bigger share of the prize. It's the inevitable. Apple with it's Apple TV as the blank sheet of paper to forge forward instead of messing around with a dead structure that is playing hard to get.
And this is what happens with these over regulated businesses. To grow they have to merge with some kind of vaguely related entity instead of the more logical competition.
Just one more reason for me to continue thinking about dumping my T-Mobile account. Their coverage sucks.
We are saving at least $100 a month over AT&T (which I loathe beyond words). Service has been fine. In our office, signal not great, but neither is Verizon.
(As a side note: If AT&T could actually come out with plans that are not smoke and mirrors, I'd consider them. They are so mega-corp it's beyond words to describe. We tried to see what our bill would be by going through our corporate discount page and it was a nightmare maze and we gave up.)
I have always wondered why Apple have never picked up a TV/Movie Studio along the way. They could easily snap up Sony Pictures and have access to a massive back catalogue of TV and movie content plus ongoing and future productions.
I think they will have to stay focused. Already the products and categories are growing. And services. Hard to be all things to all people.
What's next? Space exploration to compete with Musk? I'm half-kidding.
Not a criticism of Apple or anyone. Question is: where do you stop? What is your scope before you become so watered down. Microsoft is all over the place and this has maybe been a problem in the past. Food for thought.
Dish/T-mobile do not produce content. Apple and Disney have a close relationship. Don't see where this is a threat to Apple TV. A threat to ATT, Verizon, Sprint and perhaps the cable providers along with Google fiber.
What the hell are you talking about? The alternative services are all available through iOS apps. Apple has not eliminated the competition. Unbelievably so. This forces their internal teams to be constantly improving the Apple offerings which they have been doing - especially in maps.
Really? Why can't I replace set a default Maps app then? My original workflow used to be:
1) 3rd party app opens location in default maps app
2) I click directions, and I get transit directions from my current location to my destination.
My new workflow is:
1) 3rd party app opens location in default maps app
2) I click on the transit tab, and wait several seconds for iOS to load all the installed registered transit apps (btw, why the hell is this not cached so it opens instantly?)
3) I click on the app that I want
4) I wait for the app that I want to open with the location
It's double the number of steps, and a lot more time.
Apple could have simply allowed me to select one of the transit apps it opens as the default, so when a 3rd party app opens a map, it opens in that app, instead of the Apple Map, but they chose not to do so.
To be fair, iOS 8 (as well as Yosemite) was a great release, which opened up a lot of services which Apple was keeping exclusively for itself (the best example being providing Share sheets, and OS level integration for providers like OneDrive and Dropbox).
My whole point is I want more of iCloud Drive style services (where competitors get almost as good access as the Apple service, considering security and API stability) than Maps style services, where users have to go through the Apple application to get to the competitor's, making the alternatives' experience worse.
Dish Network Sling Service, which was previously available under the banner of DishWorld long ago for their international customers. Their App totally sucks and navigation is pathetic (just like NetFlix's.) Now, how does T-Mobile buying them out and it being a threat to Apple TV or their unannounced TV service, is just beyond me. Now, if you say that it is thread to AT&T Uverse, it is plausible.
In any case, Just about all the streaming services and devices has a very poor navigation and interactivity The user experience is just good on Apple TV. So, whenever Apple does bring the live TV streaming, I do feel it is going to make a difference. I do feel the product is ready. The networks are just dragging the feet and that to only for money. Now, I don't know how much of the local network channels are owned by the networks and is the issue with that or not. Though, if Apple made the set top boxes that allows OTA digital signals from the local broadcaster and have it integrate into Apple TV, would they not be able to get around the local channel issue (yes, it might not have the on demand kind of capabilities, but this could be a stop gap solution)
As noted earlier, Apple is hostage to The Last Mile problem. Whatever they offer to users they have use the pipe supplied by whatever the user has available. invariably, home users are tied to telco/cableco pipes. While ATT was forced to open access on their network to wholesalers, this as of yet hasn't been forced on the cable monopolies (that would be a game changer deluxe but that's a topic for another time) and the bundles that are offered pretty much tie up subscribers to the monopoly. Moreover, is it not goofy that we're essntially paying twice for internet access? We're paying for the landline and we're paying a data plan for our wireless device(s). Here's a twofer for you:
A) Apple buys T-Mobile. Majority owned by DT and a GSM carrier. Instant worldwide access.
Apple makes an offer to Charlie Ergen for the *vast* wireless spectrum Dish possesses but not yet deployed.
C) Apple goes into next year's round of wireless auctions and ATT & VZN crap their pants. The next round is low-band which allows for much longer range and a vastly improved ability to penetrate walls. Everything John Legere has been complaining about which ATT/VZN have totally ignored will now be trumpeted loudly by them since Apple will spend cash to acquire this most valuable spectrum.
Purchasing T-Mobile immediately breaks through the Last Mile. An Airport Extreme router gets an LTE radio. Home users get to dump their cable/DSL connection and use LTE for both home and mobile access. T-Mobile already offers an unlimited LTE option that's priced fairly aggressively. Internet of Things w/ HomeKit magically just work.
Correct me if I am wrong... But I thought Apple is a majority stakeholder in Disney?... Yes/No??
Or maybe Disney is Apple's largest stock holding???
No, Steve Jobs' widow (Laurene Powell Jobs) is a very large shareholder in Disney (she inherited the Disney stock received from the sale of Pixar to Disney by Steve).
My concern with Apple is that lately when it has been entering a service, it has been eliminating its competitors from providing a high quality alternative. The best example of this, of course, is Maps, which does not provide transit, and competitors cannot provide an easy drop-in replacement (looking up directions means opening the Apple Maps app, then hitting the transit tab, followed by opening the actual app you want) which has significantly degraded the Apple experience for the last several years. An area in which Apple was the unequivocal leader.
did you know you can use whatever Map in AppStore, right? Apple doesn't eliminate any competition. Google Chrome default to Google map in the same manner. If you want Google map, use Chrome.
Comments
Probably because of Sling TV but mostly because of the clicks the article will get. If you have ever watched The Big Lebowski, Appleinsider is like Walter, everything has something to do with Nam, or in the case of Appleinsider, to do with Apple.
Even short range LTE needs a landline.
Those VRADs are already fed by fiber. I think a single VRAD (video ready access device) can support 192 subscribers. They are fed by a gigabit fiber line from the hub in the central office. When at&t was building out U-verse in my town we were turning up two or three VRADs a day for a several months. So if you consider fiber to be a landline then yes. The important thing to know is that that last mile to the subscriber’s house is THE most expensive part of the deal in terms of conditioning and maintenance over the long haul.
I disagree that Google Maps was pushed aside for the reasons offered. IMO Apple's plan to replace Google Maps had begun as far back as at least 2009 if not earlier. That's when they began scooping up location-focused companies like PlaceBase and Poly9. The "Google wanted to track you and Apple saved us" meme was a chance to kick a competitor on the way out with a planted rumor from an unofficial "anonymous source with knowledge of the situation".
I don't at all doubt that Google would have liked access to anonymized location and speed data like they do with Google traffic. I doubt Google wouldn't have liked the maps app to be labeled "powered by Google Maps" too. Absolutely two believable points, they make sense. I also have little doubt that with Apple planning their own maps they would decline both requests. At the same time it's silly to think Google was unaware of Apple's map-building and their eventual replacement. Heck with dozens of engineers going back and forth between the two they each know a whole lot more about the other than they let on in public.
But the rumor that Apple was held hostage, stuck between a rock and a hard place, and it was all Google's fault for forcing their hand with demands for your private information is bunk IMHO. I think Apple was building their own in-house platform no matter what Google did or didn't do. It was just another straightforward instance of Apple replacing a favored 3rd party supplier/partner when they found value in doing so.
I think there is far more value in new content than a library. Media is driven by new content, Apple could leverage it's size with enticing production companies to bring content directly to Apple and directly to consumers bypassing networks and studios. Let production companies take the risk and a bigger share of the prize. It's the inevitable. Apple with it's Apple TV as the blank sheet of paper to forge forward instead of messing around with a dead structure that is playing hard to get.
You win for dumbest business post of all time.
Just one more reason for me to continue thinking about dumping my T-Mobile account. Their coverage sucks.
We are saving at least $100 a month over AT&T (which I loathe beyond words). Service has been fine. In our office, signal not great, but neither is Verizon.
(As a side note: If AT&T could actually come out with plans that are not smoke and mirrors, I'd consider them. They are so mega-corp it's beyond words to describe. We tried to see what our bill would be by going through our corporate discount page and it was a nightmare maze and we gave up.)
I have always wondered why Apple have never picked up a TV/Movie Studio along the way. They could easily snap up Sony Pictures and have access to a massive back catalogue of TV and movie content plus ongoing and future productions.
I think they will have to stay focused. Already the products and categories are growing. And services. Hard to be all things to all people.
What's next? Space exploration to compete with Musk? I'm half-kidding.
Not a criticism of Apple or anyone. Question is: where do you stop? What is your scope before you become so watered down. Microsoft is all over the place and this has maybe been a problem in the past. Food for thought.
What the hell are you talking about? The alternative services are all available through iOS apps. Apple has not eliminated the competition. Unbelievably so. This forces their internal teams to be constantly improving the Apple offerings which they have been doing - especially in maps.
Really? Why can't I replace set a default Maps app then? My original workflow used to be:
1) 3rd party app opens location in default maps app
2) I click directions, and I get transit directions from my current location to my destination.
My new workflow is:
1) 3rd party app opens location in default maps app
2) I click on the transit tab, and wait several seconds for iOS to load all the installed registered transit apps (btw, why the hell is this not cached so it opens instantly?)
3) I click on the app that I want
4) I wait for the app that I want to open with the location
It's double the number of steps, and a lot more time.
Apple could have simply allowed me to select one of the transit apps it opens as the default, so when a 3rd party app opens a map, it opens in that app, instead of the Apple Map, but they chose not to do so.
----------------------------------------------------------
To be fair, iOS 8 (as well as Yosemite) was a great release, which opened up a lot of services which Apple was keeping exclusively for itself (the best example being providing Share sheets, and OS level integration for providers like OneDrive and Dropbox).
My whole point is I want more of iCloud Drive style services (where competitors get almost as good access as the Apple service, considering security and API stability) than Maps style services, where users have to go through the Apple application to get to the competitor's, making the alternatives' experience worse.
Dish Network Sling Service, which was previously available under the banner of DishWorld long ago for their international customers. Their App totally sucks and navigation is pathetic (just like NetFlix's.) Now, how does T-Mobile buying them out and it being a threat to Apple TV or their unannounced TV service, is just beyond me. Now, if you say that it is thread to AT&T Uverse, it is plausible.
In any case, Just about all the streaming services and devices has a very poor navigation and interactivity The user experience is just good on Apple TV. So, whenever Apple does bring the live TV streaming, I do feel it is going to make a difference. I do feel the product is ready. The networks are just dragging the feet and that to only for money. Now, I don't know how much of the local network channels are owned by the networks and is the issue with that or not. Though, if Apple made the set top boxes that allows OTA digital signals from the local broadcaster and have it integrate into Apple TV, would they not be able to get around the local channel issue (yes, it might not have the on demand kind of capabilities, but this could be a stop gap solution)
As noted earlier, Apple is hostage to The Last Mile problem. Whatever they offer to users they have use the pipe supplied by whatever the user has available. invariably, home users are tied to telco/cableco pipes. While ATT was forced to open access on their network to wholesalers, this as of yet hasn't been forced on the cable monopolies (that would be a game changer deluxe but that's a topic for another time) and the bundles that are offered pretty much tie up subscribers to the monopoly. Moreover, is it not goofy that we're essntially paying twice for internet access? We're paying for the landline and we're paying a data plan for our wireless device(s). Here's a twofer for you:
A) Apple buys T-Mobile. Majority owned by DT and a GSM carrier. Instant worldwide access.
C) Apple goes into next year's round of wireless auctions and ATT & VZN crap their pants. The next round is low-band which allows for much longer range and a vastly improved ability to penetrate walls. Everything John Legere has been complaining about which ATT/VZN have totally ignored will now be trumpeted loudly by them since Apple will spend cash to acquire this most valuable spectrum.
Purchasing T-Mobile immediately breaks through the Last Mile. An Airport Extreme router gets an LTE radio. Home users get to dump their cable/DSL connection and use LTE for both home and mobile access. T-Mobile already offers an unlimited LTE option that's priced fairly aggressively. Internet of Things w/ HomeKit magically just work.
Correct me if I am wrong... But I thought Apple is a majority stakeholder in Disney?... Yes/No??
Or maybe Disney is Apple's largest stock holding???
Correct me if I am wrong... But I thought Apple is a majority stakeholder in Disney?... Yes/No??
Or maybe Disney is Apple's largest stock holding???
No, Steve Jobs' widow (Laurene Powell Jobs) is a very large shareholder in Disney (she inherited the Disney stock received from the sale of Pixar to Disney by Steve).
My concern with Apple is that lately when it has been entering a service, it has been eliminating its competitors from providing a high quality alternative. The best example of this, of course, is Maps, which does not provide transit, and competitors cannot provide an easy drop-in replacement (looking up directions means opening the Apple Maps app, then hitting the transit tab, followed by opening the actual app you want) which has significantly degraded the Apple experience for the last several years. An area in which Apple was the unequivocal leader.
did you know you can use whatever Map in AppStore, right? Apple doesn't eliminate any competition. Google Chrome default to Google map in the same manner. If you want Google map, use Chrome.