Time Warner Cable in Talks with Apple on Streaming Video Deals

According to Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt, who spoke to investors at the Bank of America Merill Lynch Global Telecom and Media Conference today (via FierceCable), Time Warner is in talks with Apple, Microsoft, and Samsung over potential streaming video deals that are similar to its existing partnership with Roku.

Time Warner Cable brought its authenticated cable service, TWC TV, to Roku in March. With the app, Time Warner Cable subscribers are able to watch up to 300 live TV channels with any TV connected to a Roku device, without the need for a cable box. Time Warner has a similar deal with Samsung to deliver cable programming to its connected TVs.

apple_tv_interface_2012

"You should assume we're talking to everyone who makes devices like this, whether it's Samsung smart TVs, Apple, Microsoft," Britt said at the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Global Telecom and Media conference. Britt's remarks suggest Time Warner Cable may eventually offer the TWC TV app through the Apple TV set-top and Microsoft's new Xbox One gaming console, which will debut later this year.

Apple recently struck a deal with the CW network to bring content to the Apple TV through a dedicated CW app, and it appears that Apple is open to other deals that could potentially bring the TWC TV to the Apple TV. Presumably, such an app would function similarly to the version offered via Roku, allowing Time Warner Cable subscribers to use the Apple TV to stream live television channels.

Britt's comments confirm a Wall Street Journal report from last year, which suggested that Apple was working on deals to create a set-top box that would allow user to view live cable channels.

Such deals with cable companies are necessary if Apple wants to expand its product lineup with additional TV-centric products like the "iTV," which has been rumored to be in the works since 2011. At the D11 conference last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook reiterated that television continues to be an "area of great interest" for the company.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Caution)

Top Rated Comments

samcraig Avatar
141 months ago
[url=https://cdn.macrumors.com/im/macrumorsthreadlogodarkd.png]Image (https://www.macrumors.com/2013/06/04/time-warner-cable-in-talks-with-apple-on-streaming-video-deals/)[/url]


According to Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt, who spoke to investors at the Bank of America Merill Lynch Global Telecom and Media Conference today (via FierceCable (http://www.fiercecable.com/story/britt-time-warner-cable-talking-apple-microsoft-samsung-about-streaming-vid/2013-06-04)), Time Warner is in talks with Apple, Microsoft, and Samsung over potential streaming video deals that are similar to its existing partnership with Roku.

Time Warner Cable brought (http://blog.roku.com/blog/2013/03/05/twc-tv-launches-on-roku/) its authenticated cable service, TWC TV (http://www.timewarnercable.com/en/residential-home/tv/features/twc-tv.html), to Roku in March. With the app, Time Warner Cable subscribers are able to watch up to 300 live TV channels with any TV connected to a Roku device, without the need for a cable box. Time Warner has a similar deal with Samsung to deliver cable programming to its connected TVs.

Image (https://cdn.macrumors.com/article-new/2013/03/apple_tv_interface_2012.jpg)Apple recently struck a deal (https://www.macrumors.com/2013/05/16/cw-strikes-deal-with-apple-to-bring-content-to-apple-tv/) with the CW network to bring content to the Apple TV through a dedicated CW app, and it appears that Apple is open to other deals that could potentially bring the TWC TV to the Apple TV. Presumably, such an app would function similarly to the version offered via Roku, allowing Time Warner Cable subscribers to use the Apple TV to stream live television channels.

Britt's comments confirm a Wall Street Journal report (https://www.macrumors.com/2012/08/15/apple-in-talks-to-build-set-top-box-to-display-live-television/) from last year, which suggested that Apple was working on deals to create a set-top box that would allow user to view live cable channels.

Such deals with cable companies are necessary if Apple wants to expand its product lineup with additional TV-centric products like the "iTV," which has been rumored (https://www.macrumors.com/2011/10/21/steve-jobs-on-an-apple-television-set-i-finally-cracked-it/) to be in the works since 2011. At the D11 conference last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook reiterated (https://www.macrumors.com/2013/05/28/tim-cook-at-d11-apple-television-there-is-a-grand-vision/) that television continues to be an "area of great interest" for the company.

Article Link: Time Warner Cable in Talks with Apple on Streaming Video Deals (https://www.macrumors.com/2013/06/04/time-warner-cable-in-talks-with-apple-on-streaming-video-deals/)

Fantastic headline. I'm sure it will get lots of clicks. As the quote says - one should assume (and don't we already anyway) that if TWC is talking about streaming services - they are talking to the likes of Microsoft, Samsung, Apple, etc

Also - the press should stop referring to it as iTV.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
barkomatic Avatar
141 months ago
Ok, so what am I missing? It seems like the only benefit to the TWC app is that you can avoid renting an additional set top box if you've got an Apple TV to stream from right? Otherwise, you have to be a TWC subscriber already and probably can't use the app on an iPad outside of your home wifi network. Snooze.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Porco Avatar
141 months ago

Such deals with cable companies are necessary if Apple wants to expand its product lineup with additional TV-centric products like the "iTV,"

:rolleyes:

In case no-one has said this before :rolleyes:, it won't be called that.

And people will keep saying this every time those three letters are used together in every article about Apple and television. I'm boring myself even typing this.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
basesloaded190 Avatar
141 months ago
Not sure what the point of this would be if you still need to sign up for the same cable package. If they offered a streaming only package for cheaper, then you have something.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mic j Avatar
141 months ago
Where would iTunes be today if you had to buy the cd before you could download the music to listen to?

If these are the type deals Apple is spending it's time negotiating, they need to get a clue! Wow...I get to eliminate a cable box!! :rolleyes:
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
charlituna Avatar
141 months ago
I'm glad Apple is catching up with Roku's concepts

Allegedly.

For all we know, Time Warner came to the table and said "hey we'll be happy to let you add our Time Warner TV to your service." and Apple countered. "No thanks, we want you let folks subscribe directly to HBO and such via the existing apps. Without needing cable. Oh and stop making folks wait for a zillion months to get legal downloads for Warners stuff."
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 16 Camera Lozenge 2 Perspective Gray

Five Key Upgrades Coming to iPhone 16

Friday March 15, 2024 1:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone is Apple's top-selling product, and it gets an update every year. In 2024, we're expecting the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro lineup, with an arguably more interesting feature set than we got with the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Capture Button All four iPhone 16 models are set to get a whole new button, which will be...
When To Expect New iPads Feature 1

Apple to Announce New iPads on March 26, Rumors Claim

Monday March 18, 2024 4:02 am PDT by
Apple is widely expected to release new iPad Air and OLED iPad Pro models in the next few weeks. According to new rumors coming out of Asia, the company will announce its new iPads on Tuesday, March 26. Chinese leaker Instant Digital on Weibo this morning 日发布%23">claimed that the date will see some sort of announcement from Apple related to new iPads, but stopped short of calling it an...
airpods 3 orange

Two New AirPods 4 Models Expected to Launch in September or October

Sunday March 17, 2024 7:56 am PDT by
Apple suppliers will begin production of two new fourth-generation AirPods models in May, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Based on this production timeframe, he expects the headphones to be released in September or October. Gurman expects both fourth-generation AirPods models to feature a new design with better fit, improved sound quality, and an updated charging case with a USB-C...
iphone se 4 modified flag edges

iPhone SE 4 Expected to Depreciate Heavily

Tuesday March 12, 2024 9:04 am PDT by
Resale value trends suggest the iPhone SE 4 may not hold its value as well as Apple's flagship models, according to SellCell. According to the report, Apple's iPhone SE models have historically depreciated much more rapidly than the company's more premium offerings. The third-generation iPhone SE, which launched in March 2022, experienced a significant drop in resale value, losing 42.6%...
iOS 17 Passkey With Apple ACCOUNT Feature

'Apple ID' Expected to Change to 'Apple Account' Starting With iOS 18

Sunday March 17, 2024 7:13 am PDT by
MacRumors was first to report that Apple was planning to rebrand "Apple ID" to "Apple Account" across its software platforms and websites like iCloud.com as early as this year, and now Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has corroborated this change. A mockup of the new Apple Account branding In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said the new "Apple Account" branding will start to be used later this...
General iOS 17 Feature Orange Purple

iOS 17.4.1 Update for iPhone is Imminent

Monday March 18, 2024 5:27 am PDT by
iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 should be released within the next few days, with a build number of 21E235, according to a source with a proven track record. MacRumors previously reported that Apple was internally testing iOS 17.4.1. As a minor update for the iPhone, it will likely address software bugs and/or security vulnerabilities. It is unclear if the update will include any other changes. ...