In what would be a parallel with its fabled connected TV, Apple is said to be on the verge of suspending plans to launch a live TV offering.





The much rumoured and long-awaited project has been the focus of speculation all summer when reports suggested that the over-the-top (OTT) service was set to arrive in late 2015 and have a transformative effect on the online video and subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) markets. Yet even then the CE giant was said to have been forced to delay launch due to slow movement in crucial licensing talks with TV networks — such as CBS, NBC and Fox — as well as the need for network capacity upgrades. Now the Bloomberg news agency is reporting that Apple has officially suspended plans to offer a live Internet-based television service and is instead focusing on being a platform for media companies to sell directly to customers through its App Store. Indeed earlier in 2015 Apple CEP Tim Cook said: “Apps are the future of TV.”Bloomberg quoted CBS CEO Les Moonves as revealing that Apple’s plans would be fulfilled but that they had been put on hold. Moonves said: “This will happen ... [Apple] has four major networks and ten cable networks, let’s say, and the price point will be in the $30s, $30 to $35, $40 maybe. People will not be spending money on channels they don’t want to watch.”