ABC News' New Apple TV Channel Showing Strong Live Video Usage

Roughly six weeks ago, ABC News launched a new Apple TV channel offering a wide range of live and on-demand content from both national and select local feeds. Based on the first 30 days of availability, ABC News has now put together an infographic that offers a look at how the channel is being used. Among the interesting observations:

- Live video usage on Apple TV, which accounts for 20 percent of channel views, is 50 percent higher than on mobile and desktop combined.

- Apple TV viewers spend 65 percent more time per visit than desktop users.

- Peak usage for the ABC News Apple TV channel falls at 9 PM Eastern Time, likely due to that time period encompassing evening viewing hours for most of the United States.

abc_news_apple_tv_infographic_crop

Click for full infographic

Alongside today's usage data release, ABC News is also announcing the addition of three new local stations to the channel: Albuquerque (KOAT), Boston (WCVB), and Honolulu (KITV). The new additions join the original nine local stations made available on the channel at launch.

Apple has been adding new channels to the Apple TV at a fairly rapid pace, at least in the United States, although many of them require authentication through an existing cable service provider. The company has long been rumored to be working on a more powerful set-top box, but the latest rumors have suggested the device is unlikely to arrive until 2015.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)

Popular Stories

Tim Cook WWDC 2018

Report: Tim Cook to Step Down as Apple CEO 'as Soon as Next Year'

Saturday November 15, 2025 2:40 pm PST by
Apple is preparing for Tim Cook to step down as CEO of the company "as soon as next year," according to the Financial Times. The company's board of directors and senior executives "recently intensified preparations for Cook to hand over the reins," the report said. While the report said that Apple is unlikely to name a new CEO before its next earnings report in late January, it went on to ...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, and AirPods 4

Thursday November 13, 2025 11:35 am PST by
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3, the AirPods 4, and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 firmware is 8B21, all up from the prior 8A358 firmware released in October. There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods 4 with ANC, and AirPods Pro 3...
iOS 26

Everything New in iOS 26.2 Beta 3

Monday November 17, 2025 3:20 pm PST by
Apple provided developers with the third beta of an upcoming iOS 26.2 update, and there are still new features that are being added with each beta that we get. We've rounded up all of the changes that Apple made in beta 3. AirDrop Apple added new AirDrop functionality, providing a way for two people to share files temporarily without having to add one another as contacts. iOS 26.2...
best early black friday deals

Best Black Friday Apple Deals Live Now - Save on AirPods, iPads, and Apple Watches

Saturday November 15, 2025 1:45 pm PST by
We're officially in the month of Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When ...
Apple Wallet ID Illinois

iPhone Driver's License Feature Launching in Illinois

Tuesday November 18, 2025 8:47 am PST by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Starting this Wednesday, November 19, the feature will be available to residents of Illinois. The announcement confirmed that the...
iPhone Pocket Short

iPhone Pocket Now Available to Order, But Already Selling Out

Friday November 14, 2025 6:20 am PST by
Apple recently teamed up with Japanese fashion brand ISSEY MIYAKE to create the iPhone Pocket, a limited-edition knitted accessory designed to carry an iPhone. iPhone Pocket is available to order on Apple's online store starting today, in the United States, France, China, Italy, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. However, it is already completely sold out in the United...
apple silicon mac lineup 2024 feature purple m5

Apple's 2026 Mac Plans

Friday November 14, 2025 3:23 pm PST by
Most of Apple's Macs are slated to get M5 chips across 2026, and there's a possibility we'll even see the first M6 chips toward the end of the year. Updates are planned for everything from the MacBook Air to the Mac Studio. MacBook Air (Early 2026) The MacBook Air will be one of the first Macs to get a 2026 refresh, with an update planned for the first few months of the year. The MacBook...
CarPlay Liquid Glass Dark

Here's When Tesla is Expected to Add Support for Apple CarPlay

Sunday November 16, 2025 6:49 am PST by
In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reiterated that Tesla plans to add Apple CarPlay support to its vehicles "in the coming months." This is easily the biggest news for the regular version of CarPlay in years, should Tesla actually follow through with offering the system in its vehicles. As noted by Gurman, this would be a stunning reversal for Tesla and its CEO Elon ...
tvOS 26 Profiles

tvOS 26.2 Adds a Useful New Feature to Your Apple TV

Friday November 14, 2025 10:02 am PST by
Starting with the upcoming tvOS 26.2 update, currently in beta, additional profiles created on the Apple TV no longer require their own Apple Account. In the Settings app on the Apple TV, under Profiles and Accounts, anyone can create a new profile by simply entering a name and indicating whether the profile is for a kid. The profile will be associated with the primary user's Apple Account,...
Apple Sports App Preview Feature

Apple Sports App on iPhone Now Available in More European Countries

Monday November 17, 2025 6:27 am PST by
The free Apple Sports app on the iPhone was released in additional European countries today, including Belgium, Croatia, Czechia, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Poland, Hungary, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Serbia, Greece, Estonia, Latvia, Romania, Ukraine, and others. The app was already available in the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Austria, France, Germany,...

Top Rated Comments

furi0usbee Avatar
147 months ago
A good start. If people could get live news with Apple TV, many people would cut their cable cord so fast.... I've always said, if I could just get a subscription for 7-10 channels and supplement that with iTunes Season Passes, that's all I would need
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BrockC Avatar
147 months ago
These numbers should make the negotiations with service providers easier. :D
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
thatisme Avatar
147 months ago
I still don't understand the draw to these App channels. If you already have a cable / sat subscription then watch cable. Why would the standard over-the-air channels require a cable subscription? ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, WB, etc...

I watch only a handful of channels, but am required to buy multiple tiers on cable or DirecTV to get what I want to watch. On top of the over the air channels, I use ESPN, Velocity, Discovery, CNN, Fox News, MTV, Nick and the Golf Channel. ATv will show it's value when you don't need to already pay for service elsewhere and offer up a per-channel subscription independent of cable/sat. At $ 0.99 per month per channel, you could a-la-carte your viewing and I would suspect that a good percentage of users would be perfectly happy with that.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Rogifan Avatar
147 months ago
A good start. If people could get live news with Apple TV, many people would cut their cable cord so fast.... I've always said, if I could just get a subscription for 7-10 channels and supplement that with iTunes Season Passes, that's all I would need

When do we get ESPN Go without needing a cable/satellite subscription?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MarkNY Avatar
147 months ago
Why would the standard over-the-air channels require a cable subscription? ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, WB, etc...

Blame the retransmission consent fees of the 1992 Cable TV act. Completely rigged the game in favor of the network affiliates and is one big roadblock for Apple and others reaching deals with cable companies. They're holding things up, looking for money, even though they produce nothing.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ncollingridge Avatar
147 months ago


Apple has been adding new channels to the Apple TV at a fairly rapid pace, at least in the United States,
Thanks for recognising that the situation in the US is not the situation elsewhere in the world. Here in the UK the AppleTV is, let's face it, little more use than an equivalently sized piece of solid plastic.

All the main TV channels here (that's all of the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, and Sky channels which adds up to a lot of TV) not only have no end of people watching their material using catch-up internet viewing, but their apps are present on pretty much all the platforms available - apart from AppleTV, that is. How disgraceful is that on Apple's part? What makes it even worse is that they ALL have apps on iOS devices apart from AppleTV, so porting them across to AppleTV would be a trivial matter.

Come on Apple, step up to the plate. If you want to be a credible player then you need to deliver on the basics. And not just in the USA but other places as well, particularly where the job would be easy.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)