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Everything we know about Apple's plan to disrupt TV
There's little question at this point that Apple is working on building a streaming TV service.
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The company is known for taking products with frustrating and unfriendly user experiences — for many Americans, cable and satellite TV service would definitely fall into this category — and creating beautifully designed products and services that appeal to millions of people.
If Apple were to come out with a streaming TV service, it could have broad implications across the TV industry. As soon it's released, millions of people will be able to choose another company to pay for their TV. The competition may force pay TV companies like Comcast, Time Warner Cable, and DirecTV, which traditionally haven't had much competition, to offer smaller, more flexible packages, improve customer service, and perhaps even lower fees and prices.
Apple hasn't said anything publicly about a TV service, but there are plenty of rumors and leaks about what it could look like.
Check out everything we think we know about Apple's rumored TV service.
Don't expect Apple's TV service to have hundreds of channels like a typical cable or satellite package. The Wall Street Journal reported in March that the service will have around 25 channels, including ESPN and FX.
Les Moonves, the CEO of CBS, told Re/Code's Kara Swisher in May that he recently had met with Apple vice president Eddy Cue to talk about the new TV service. Moonves said CBS will "probably" be a part of it.
Brian X. Chen of the New York Times reported in March that the service could cost somewhere around $20 or $30 per month. Customers would still have to pay for broadband service, which would likely be from a cable company, however.
The WSJ reported that the service will stream on Apple's devices that run iOS, like iPads and iPhones.
According to BuzzFeed's John Paczkowski, Apple will announce a new Apple TV box next month. The new device, which plugs into TVs and allows you to stream video from the internet to the biggest screen in your home, will reportedly come with a new touchpad remote, have Siri controls, and include an app store.
Apple TV will probably be the way most people access the new TV service.
Apple said at its annual conference for developers in June that a software update to the iPad will include a new picture-in-picture feature, which will allow people to check email or respond to a text message while watching a video. It's easy to see how well this feature would work with a streaming TV service.
Re/Code's Peter Kafka and Dawn Chmielewski reported in May that Apple has been negotiating with local broadcast channels to include them on the service. Similar services, like Sling TV, don't offer local channels.
With Apple Music, Apple is working really hard to give you exactly what you want to listen to at a given time. And in an interview with Wired UK last week, Apple Music boss Jimmy Iovine dropped a hint that Apple could be working on the same kind of technology for a TV service.
"We all know one thing, we all have different television delivery systems, don't we all wish that the delivery systems were better, as far as curation and service?" he told Wired UK. "We want to watch movies. Sit down with your girlfriend or a bunch of friends and try to find a movie online. That box helps you none -- it doesn't help. You're on your own. And eventually that will catch them unless somebody digs in and really helps the customer. And entertainment needs that, it needs to live and breathe."
BuzzFeed's Paczkowski reported recently that the new streaming service, which had been rumored to be unveiled as early as this fall, may not actually come out until 2016.
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