Idiots at NBC Get All Programs Tossed from iTUNES

Published on August 31st, 2007

Excite News – Apple Escalates NBC Spat Over iTunes — This is typical of the way boneheads operate. Good for Apple doing this.

Apple Inc. AAPL AAPL escalated a dispute with NBC Universal over the pricing of television shows by announcing Friday it would not sell any of NBCs programs for this fall season on iTunes.

Earlier, NBC had told Apple that it would no longer allow its programs to be sold via iTunes at the end of the year. NBC Universal-controlled television programming accounts for an estimated 40 percent of the video downloads on iTunes.

“We are disappointed to see NBC leave iTunes because we would not agree to their dramatic price increase,” said Eddy Cue, Apples vice president of iTunes. “We hope they will change their minds and offer their TV shows to the tens of millions of iTunes customers.”

Rather than cut off NBC programs in the middle of the season, Apple decided to stop before the new fall episodes premiere next month, he said. That would be a blow to fourth-place NBC, which could use the buzz provided by Internet sales for its programming – not to mention the money.

ABC, CBS, Fox and the CW, and 50 other cable networks, have deals in place to sell fall shows at iTunes current price of $1.99 per episode, Apple said. NBC wanted Apple to pay more than double its wholesale price for the material, which would have resulted in the retail price increasing to $4.99, Apple said.

66 users responded in " Idiots at NBC Get All Programs Tossed from iTUNES "

Subscribe to this post comment rss or trackback url

# 1 pedro said, on August 31st, 2007 at 11:20 am

Idiots? Why?

# 2 GigG said, on August 31st, 2007 at 11:20 am

What in God’s name makes NBC, the 4th ranked network, think their shows should cost more than all of the other networks?

I could understand this if it was a bunch of Hollywood types making the decision but this is GE are real company that deals in the real world most of the time.

# 3 moss said, on August 31st, 2007 at 11:21 am

The dodos at the network channels still think it’s 1951.

CBS is another winner. At the moment, they have a couple of successes. So, instead of working to build their distribution through all the sources that don’t belong to their subsidiaries, e.g., cable and satellite – they have refused contracts with about half these providers – unless they’re paid more than anyone else.

They would have invented DRM if the dinosaurs in the RIAA and MPAA didn’t beat them to it.

# 4 bill said, on August 31st, 2007 at 11:45 am

I just looked at the list of shows ‘available’ from NBC on iTunes…
I won’t miss any of them.

They arn’t worth $4.99

I magine that even at $1.99 it was really profitable for them. I mean where are the distribution costs?

Time to ‘lock out’ NBC on the telly…
8^(

# 5 echeola said, on August 31st, 2007 at 11:48 am

What a bunch of losers. I’ve spent over $100 on shows that I missed when they aired. Now, unless they have an easy and inexpensive way to download and view them, I may just use a torrent.

I saw they wanted to more than double the price to 4.99. Come on!!! Over $100 for a season. These guys are so stupid.

# 6 sirfelix said, on August 31st, 2007 at 11:50 am

FINALLY! Someone willing to make a decision with their wallets.

Corporations will continue to make/provide crap if you, the public, continue to buy crap. Europe has figured this out and as a result have access to better content, products and technology. Wake up America.

My wife and I refuse to pay $50/month for commercial-filled cable tv.
Offer it to us for $10/month and we’ll think about it.

# 7 Hoamer said, on August 31st, 2007 at 12:04 pm

#6: While I applaud what appears to be a noble move on your part (speaking with your wallet), you are missing out on all kinds of good stuff on cable every month.

And if you are waiting for $10 per month cable, you are waiting for Godot. It aint gonna happen, friend.

# 8 KagatoAMV said, on August 31st, 2007 at 12:11 pm

$1.99 seems like just the right price point for me to buy individual TV programs. I haven’t bought a lot of them, few Venture Bros, Heroes and South Parks, but $4.99? Doesn’t seem worth it at all.

I’m curious if NBC will expect $4.99 from whatever service they move to? Or did they just want the extra money out of Apple?

# 9 pedro said, on August 31st, 2007 at 12:11 pm

#5 You pay to watch tv? are you sure NBC is the loser here? Paying for cable’s one thing, but…ah whatever. Get a house loan while you’re at it.

# 10 Peter iNova said, on August 31st, 2007 at 12:17 pm

We are in last place among our peers! Whine, whine. We need more money. Whine, whine. We need to shoot ourselves in the foot and cheese off the folks who have helped us the most. Whine, whine.

Seriously. This could topple the Head of NBC. It’s not just an underlings move that can be corrected with a bunch of middle management or even second-tier executives head-rollings.

For a company that stands to gain so much by patience and tolerance, NBC has demonstrated that it understands little, but covets much.

What they really need to do is sell their TV shows for 99 cents. Or 69 cents. And grow the audience while embracing the changing universe of media instead of taking their ball and going home in a snit.

NBC/Universal/Vivendi is either the smartest guy in the room or the dunce. We know what their opinion of themselves is, but…

So far their duncical tendencies outweigh any concept of their being the smartest guys in the room. If they had been smart, they would have been in first place, not last.

But one thing is for sure. They have managed to piss off the smartest guy in the room. Big Time.

NBC-Zune, anyone?

# 11 ikelleigh said, on August 31st, 2007 at 12:33 pm

$115 for an entire season of Heroes, when I can buy the DVD set for under $50?

Has logic just gone out the door for these people?

# 12 Don said, on August 31st, 2007 at 12:45 pm

Look, I am no fan of Apple, but this move is just brilliant on their part.

1) They look like the good guy for trying to stand up for the little guy.

2) They are only loosing content from the suckiest of the big 4 networks.

3) They are establishing that they control pricing on their system.

4) NBC has no real alternative that will give them the numbers they can get from itunes.

NBC is just shooting off another toe. I wonder how many they have left.

Don

# 13 Peter iNova said, on August 31st, 2007 at 12:47 pm

NBC/Universal’s distribution site is Hulu.

Wow. They lie to me before they even are up and running.

“Our hope is that Hulu will embody our (admittedly ambitious) never-ending mission, which is to help you find and enjoy the world’s premier content when, where and how you want it.

The second bit of news is that we are now accepting sign-ups at hulu.com for invitations to our web site’s private beta.”

Jason Kilar
CEO, Hulu
jason.kilar@hulu.com

——————–
When and how I want it is not to give you all my data so you can spam the hell out of my email with your junk before you launch this, then charge me 250% of the going rate for programs.

Kilar’s days at NBC/Universal/Hulu may be as numbered as Jeff Zucker’s (he’s the head of NBC).

Operation Clean Sweep at NBC starts today.

# 14 ECA said, on August 31st, 2007 at 12:50 pm

WHEn is the FCC going to ENFORCE cable to sell individual channels?

# 15 pedro said, on August 31st, 2007 at 12:56 pm

Yeah, mac the charitable and the one looking to protect us. The things you have to read.

# 16 Freebie said, on August 31st, 2007 at 1:08 pm

Dunno ’bout you kids, but — the good shows are available for free on BitTorrent feeds. Since it’s broadcast, I consider it free, and I’m not paying anybody for the download. I wouldn’t buy the show, but will certainly watch it and encourage other people to watch it and/or download it. They owe me a check for promoting their programming.

# 17 Dale Huber said, on August 31st, 2007 at 1:32 pm

The only show I find worth watching on NBC is 30 Rock. I would love to see Tina Fey write into the show scenes were the cast is watching iPods or talking on iPhones. This show takes shots at GE all the time, if she did that I might buy that episode (but only from iTunes at $1.99). Wait I just went to the shows website and you can watch it there for free. Who would pay $4.99? That is crazy!!!!!

# 18 zaw said, on August 31st, 2007 at 1:49 pm

idoits buy shows form iTunes! Get a Tivo!

# 19 pedro said, on August 31st, 2007 at 2:11 pm

#18 That’s the spirit! or any dvr. Aren’t there supposed to be geeks around here? how ’bout making a dvr from an old computer. Even with linux, fer cryin’ out loud!

We’re filled with mac bums here.

# 20 Undissembled said, on August 31st, 2007 at 2:26 pm

Who gives a rip? You can go on nbc.com and watch all there shit on demand for free. iTune sheep.

# 21 MikeN said, on August 31st, 2007 at 2:29 pm

This is 40 percent of the itunes programming, so isn’t this a bad move on Apple’s part? If NBC thinks they can get that much for their shows, Apple should let them.

# 22 jlm said, on August 31st, 2007 at 2:52 pm

wait wait wait, people actually pay money to see NBCs crappy shows? NBC should be thankful for anything they get

# 23 Aaron Davies said, on August 31st, 2007 at 3:12 pm

I can almost hear the Battlestar Galactica fans racing to their bittorrent clients. I guess NBC thinks that $0 is better then $2.

Aaron

# 24 eggfou said, on August 31st, 2007 at 3:13 pm

I don’t have cable. I am much happier just paying for and downloading the shows I actually want from iTunes. Its easy enough to watch them on my TV. At 4.99 though, I will just go to the torrents. Apple understands this. Why doesn’t NBC?

# 25 pedro said, on August 31st, 2007 at 3:48 pm

#24 do you ever get out? I mean, besides going out to buy mac stuff.

# 26 Matt said, on August 31st, 2007 at 5:01 pm

Did John just commend Apple?

# 27 Dave said, on August 31st, 2007 at 5:40 pm

I buy Macs because it’s the best hardware and software on the market. If these idiots make things harder for me to use my equipment, I’ll drop all of their products. More and more people are turning to the better experience with Apple products. I do not think that it is a good market strategy to attack us.

# 28 GregA said, on August 31st, 2007 at 5:47 pm

Well since all this content is now available on xbox in HD, without the hassle of installing iTunes, and having quick time break ie, I think it is a good thing that someone finally put Apple in their place.

Besides, NBC wants to be on the number one video download service which happens to also be the xbox, and not tied into some exclusive deal with iTunes.

Bravo for NBC!! I was just looking at the download rankings and Heroes HD is currently the number one television video on XBLM.

# 29 J said, on August 31st, 2007 at 6:31 pm

First

These shows air for FREE. You can record them in HD or standard and either skip past the commercials or edit the commercials completely out. Or you can even just watch them when they are on or not watch them at all. They must have a laugh when they see that people are willing to pay for something they already get for free.

#27 Dave

Not to start a flame war but don’t make me laugh. There are many software packages that out perform and are superior in version to their counter parts on the Mac. Adobe, Avid, Autodesk, ZBrush to name a few. Adobe doesnt even make certain CS3 products for the Mac at all.

As far as Hardware LOL Let me know when Apple decides to put the Quadro FX 5600 in the Mac Pro. A card BTW that is 3 generations ahead of the FX 4500 they have now. The 3GHz x5365 has been available from BOXX for quite some time now so there is no advantage there on the Mac.

I love Macs and I own 3 Mac Pro’s but they are not as advanced as my PC’s from BOXX. Not by a long shot!

# 30 Lauren the Ghoti said, on August 31st, 2007 at 6:51 pm

“I love Macs and I own 3 Mac Pro’s but they are not as advanced as my PC’s from BOXX. Not by a long shot!”

AAAAHHAHAHAHAHAHAhahahaha!!!

OOO-HOOHOOHOOHOO!!! Stop it! You’re killing me!

¡Ai, caramba! ROFLMAO to the 3rd!

I’ve waited all week for a gen-u-wine hoot like that! Thx!

As soon as your PCs run as many OSes as a Mac, come back and tell me how ‘advanced’ it is. There’s slightly more to a computer than video card support.

# 31 Lauren the Ghoti said, on August 31st, 2007 at 6:56 pm

#28 – GregA

“I think it is a good thing that someone finally put Apple in their place.”

Yepperz, they sure did…

Apple’s place in online media sales: First, by far.

NBC’s place in TV market share: dead last.

w00t NBC!

# 32 GigG said, on August 31st, 2007 at 7:34 pm

#14 ECA, you couldn’t afford it.

# 33 random_chevy said, on August 31st, 2007 at 7:57 pm

NBC streams TV from it’s home page with commercials.

I’m kinda cheep. My wish price per television episode is twenty-five cents. I haven’t been successful at realizing my wish and buy DVD season box sets at upwards of eighty-five cents per episode. I buy some box sets new and some used but like new. I have the entire series of Dark Angel and Roswell. I’m almost there with The OC (just waiting for the season four price to drop out of the stratosphere), and I have all the Renegade seasons available at this time.

I wasn’t able to watch the show 24 back at it’s release because I’m into teen sci-fi and teen prime-time soaps and my plate was full. I can’t see paying for the series 24. That is not the type of content that I look forward to watching twice. Where I really lucked out is when Comcast announced A&E in Hi-Def, I found the series 24 was available from the beginning of the season one. I’ve DVR’d it all and now I am in the midst of season three. It’s not true Hi-Def, but it looks better than most standard-def played at 1080i. I’ve been careful and haven’t missed an episode DVR. The five episode per week pace is higher than the desired frequency and I can’t claim that I digest the content as intended, but DVR is so convenient.

# 34 Don said, on August 31st, 2007 at 8:22 pm

The proper way to watch 24 is to DVR the entire season, then sit down and watch the entire 24 hours matching the “Real Time” of the show.

The amazing thing about that show is how they always seem to have a dramatic mini climax every 60 minutes.

Don

# 35 J said, on August 31st, 2007 at 8:30 pm

#30 Lauren

“There’s slightly more to a computer than video card support.”

True there is support of software like Adobe On Location CS3 and Adobe Ultra CS3, 3D Studio, Softimage, Mudbox, Houdini,Toxik, Flint, Inferno, Flame, Smoke and Eyeon Digital Fusion All which do not run on OSX. Some REQUIRE A FX 5500 MIn to run on the PC

Then there are software packages like. Maya, Zbrush, Avid, Boujou, and Photoshop that ether run like shit, don’t allow the use of all plugins or are a version OR MORE behind in OSX. Photoshop has a ton of plugins that don’t work with OSX.

Considering that these are the leading software packages in the production industry and since the Mac Pro is marketed toward people who use such software. Wouldn’t you think that the graphic card is a bigger issue than you try to pass it off as?

Before you go off on the fact that the Mac runs Window so you can run all of that stuff…….you should think again. If you do run Windows on a Mac you are still stuck with the FX4500 if you want to dual boot to OSX. So you have gained nothing.

# 36 ECA said, on August 31st, 2007 at 8:34 pm

32,
You are right, I live on $750 amonth…

But then the channels that ARE almost, or Fully free to cable can be sent out for about $10 per month.

# 37 Mike Voice said, on August 31st, 2007 at 8:45 pm

29 They must have a laugh when they see that people are willing to pay for something they already get for free.

Not only that…

They think iTunes customers are stupid enough to pay even more for what they already can get for free.

The only thing stupider than iTunes customers are NBC’s advertisers.

NBC gets the 1st set of advertisers to pay for the entire cost of the shows – when they air on the network – then they get a 2nd set of advertisers to pay them money [pure profit] when the shows are streamed from NBC’s website.

And then NBC gets even more money from the stupid people who buy the entire season on DVD.

The world is just full of stupid people.

# 38 gquaglia said, on August 31st, 2007 at 9:14 pm

Well since all this content is now available on xbox in HD, without the hassle of installing iTunes,

Hassle?? GregA, you really are a moron aren’t you. Both politically and technically.

# 39 Lauren the Ghoti said, on August 31st, 2007 at 9:50 pm

#35 – J

“Considering that these are the leading software packages in the production industry and since the Mac Pro is marketed toward people who use such software. Wouldn’t you think that the graphic card is a bigger issue than you try to pass it off as?”

Hmm. Considering that those are some of the leading software packages used in the production industry – and of course you omit those that better on the Mac, or Mac-only – wouldn’t you think that the massive market share the Mac has in video, audio, photography, 2D & 3D graphics and science – in contrast to the

# 40 Lauren the Ghoti said, on August 31st, 2007 at 9:53 pm

Oops, that damn ’selected-text-deleted-when-posted’ bug done bit me…

…

# 41 Johnson said, on August 31st, 2007 at 9:54 pm

Why wouldn’t they think ipod customers would pay more. Apple people pay more for macs and get less and brag about it.

# 42 Lauren the Ghoti said, on August 31st, 2007 at 10:00 pm

ARRGGGH – gotta love how you can’t use the gahddam less-than or greater-than signs by themselves.

LESS THAN 5% market share in the general nonprofessional consumer market – must be composed of idiots not as sharp as you? That they find that the many other benefits of the hardware platform and / or the OS far outweigh the ability to use bleeding-edge video cards?

Wonder why Premiere is once again on the Mac? I mean, besides having been originally a Mac-only app just like After Effects… Could it be that Adobe caved in and put lotsa resources into reviving the Mac version because the market for it is that lucrative and demanded it? Huh?

I know what I use. I know what most of the pros I respect use. They’re usually the same thing. The % of pros who use Macs would be considerably higher when you add those who only use PCs because of availability of apps critical to their workflow, not because they actually want to.

But, hope springs eternal, as does rationalization.

# 43 pedro said, on September 1st, 2007 at 4:38 am

#29 You see #30? They still drink stevereeno’s cool-aid about macs being better than any other pc. They drank it with the powerpc macs and they still do (not that they haven’t been drinking it for way longer than that).

The only difference is that in those days, mac said grape koolaid was the thing, now he says that purplesaurus rex is the thing, grape is now yukky. Which is interesting since this two flavors were described in wikipedia (before Kraft or mac changed the entry) as turning your poop blue, which is why people believe so much in mac (if he can chage the color of our poop, he can do anything).

#33 don’t try to tell macfans anything remotely resembling logic. They’ll all gang against you. And there’s nothing worse than a macfan’s ire.

#37 I agree with you. And there seem to be new crops every hour.

See #42? it took 3 post to finally say all he could have said in one. That’s called thinking different…or messing up with a keyboard combination for a character that on any other pc may have been written just by holding the shift key. But macs are better, I believe you

# 44 Lauren the Ghoti said, on September 1st, 2007 at 4:50 am

No, it’s called thinking WordPress can’t check if a less than sign is matched with a corresponding greater than sign later, and if so, if what’s between is valid HTML – and if not, treat it as plain text. It’s called sloppy programming.

# 45 pedro said, on September 1st, 2007 at 6:59 am

#44 Well, I have to give you that. Sometimes trying to write html here drives me nuts. And I used to write web pages on notepad.

# 46 Angel H. Wong said, on September 1st, 2007 at 8:23 am

#35

Don’t forget that every time Apple makes a “new” version of OSX (insert pussycat name) you have to buy the extra expensive graphic design software AGAIN.

# 47 J said, on September 1st, 2007 at 9:02 am

Lauren

Instead of making ad hominem attack why don’t you list the Software on the Mac that is Mac only that is dominant in the production industry?

I will save you some time. Final Cut is not dominate. Avid still controls the market by almost 85%

The truth of the matter is even Pixar was and still is using PC hardware in their render farm so that should tell you something.

Lucas Films entire render farm network is PC now. It used to be SGI.

Products like flint, flame, and smoke have NO equivalent in the Mac World and there is no argument that they are dominant in the Commercial production industry.

Every product I listed is without question is responsible for 90% or more of the production in film, games, and commercials that you see. Most of those products don’t run on OSX or run poorly on OSX or are several versions behind

THOSE ARE THE FACTS!!

“That they find that the many other benefits of the hardware platform and / or the OS far outweigh the ability to use bleeding-edge video cards?”

Bullshit! You know nothing about film and commercial production. It is obvious when you make such an obviously erroneous statement.

“Wonder why Premiere is once again on the Mac? I mean, besides having been originally a Mac-only app just like After Effects”

The problem with most Mac people is that they are still living in the past.

“I know what I use. I know what most of the pros I respect use. ”

So you admit you are not a professional.

“The % of pros who use Macs would be considerably higher when you add those who only use PCs because of availability of apps critical to their workflow, not because they actually want to.”

Just plain nonsense!!!

I have worked in LA, San Francisco, New York, Vancouver, Toronto, and Chicago. Theses are the hubs of film, game, and commercial production. I assure you. You are very mistaken. Mac’s are used there is no question to that but the bulk of the work is done on PC’s running Windows or Linux.

Hey like I said I love OSX and I own many Mac’s. It is pretty and it is very comfortable but I don’t let my bias for it get in the way of facts. Unlike you seem to be doing

Now back to the Itunes NBC issue. I am very glad Apple is standing it’s ground NBC/Universal is being a little paranoid and greedy

# 48 bill said, on September 1st, 2007 at 9:17 am

NBC = Nothing But Crap

or, Nothing But Comercials

# 49 GregA said, on September 1st, 2007 at 12:16 pm

It is funny how Apple fanboys bristle when you point out that the xbox has surpassed the iTunes for video downloads, and it hasn’t been out for even a single year, with a quarter of the content.

Now iTunes has lost a significant part of their video catalog, and it looks like it is all going xbox. All the movie studios are going xbox, why even in the physical format war, it looks like movie studios are dumping bluray for the xbox format.

Just imagine what happens next year when microsoft is no longer shackled by the anti-trust settlement.

And the extra bitter irony for the blog community is, you guys were wrong, nearly entirely all wrong. Just a few months ago, bloggers were declaring Microsoft dead, and here they are dominant in yet another industry, and no one saw it coming.

LOL, losers.

# 50 GregA said, on September 1st, 2007 at 1:39 pm

Hahaha, in doing research for this story I found this FORBES article on how Microsofts media offering crush and obliterate Apples consumer media offerings.

http://members.forbes.com/forbes/2007/0917/064.html

Lol, Pwnd

# 51 GregA said, on September 1st, 2007 at 1:48 pm

OMG, even funnier. The guy who wrote the FORBES rewiew was Fake Steve Jobbs

# 52 just me said, on September 1st, 2007 at 5:55 pm

GreagA, Do you work for microsoft or did you just drink all bill’s Kool-
Aid.

# 53 pedro said, on September 1st, 2007 at 7:01 pm

#52 hope you’re not a macfan. Otherwise, you don’t get to tell anyone about drinking kool-aid.

# 54 GregA said, on September 1st, 2007 at 7:31 pm

#52,

What part of that did you miss? FAKE STEVE JOBS thinks vista+xbox is a better consumer multimedia platform than the Macintosh. It doesn’t get any more decisive than that.

Bzzzzzzt. OMG! You lose! No cool aid there at all.

# 55 gquaglia said, on September 1st, 2007 at 7:57 pm

#52, he is drinking something of Bill’s, but I’m not sure its koolaid.

# 56 GregA said, on September 1st, 2007 at 8:27 pm

#55,

I guess I am just forced to assume that little bit of gay bashing there means I won yet another argument on this website.

But I’v got to warn you… You have also proven to be a republican sympathizer, and nowadays when I republican starts gay bashing, I have to wonder where their sexual tendencies lay.

So is there anything you want to come clean about?

# 57 gquaglia said, on September 1st, 2007 at 9:11 pm

I won yet another argument on this website.

Keep dreaming.

# 58 just me said, on September 1st, 2007 at 9:30 pm

You know the old saying, when you argue on a message board even if you win you still look like a ass.

And you have won many arguments…hmmm

# 59 Odyssey67 said, on September 2nd, 2007 at 12:25 am

What Apple should do – what they should have done from the beginning – is make AppleTV WITH A DVR. And a DVD player. What better way to put the fear of the Almighty Dollar into these idiots?

Personally, I hope this is a wake up call for Steve Jobs. He really needs to stop pretending that this situation is ever going to get better. He’s been pinning a large share of the company’s future on remaking the success of the iPod/audio paradigm in video, and it just ain’t going to happen the way he’s been playing it. The hollywood studios are just too paranoid of Apple’s success – and power – at the expense of the record companies. It doesn’t matter that he’s practically saved the music industry from financial oblivion (or at least delayed it). The CEOs of these video/movie companies would rather have the ship they sail hit the shoals than give up that kind of control to one man/one company – even if it is in their shareholder’s best interests.

Jobs has been pussy-footing around this fact for too long. As a studio exec himself, he’s been ’self-indentifying’ with them way too much. What’s good for Apple should be his focus. And what’s best for his Apple customers – not for his country-club cohorts – is what’s good for his company.

I’ve said it countless times before here, and I’m going to say it again: The iPod/iTunes system works BECAUSE the system allows you to record and/or rip your own audio and do what you want with it. The record companies don’t dare leave iTunes now because they know that people will have absolutely no incentive to buy from them otherwise – the hardware and technology Apple provides makes it easy to make them irrelevant if they try to gouge their customers.

The same thing – and ONLY the same thing – will work with video. Only when companies like NBC/Universal come to fear an AppleTV DVR, with all the software polish that only Apple can bring to bear, as well as a built in DVD player that makes ripping a snap (even if Apple doesn’t provide the software for that themselves), will they begin to negotiate with Jobs in good faith. They will do so for the same reason the record companies do now; to do otherwise is to accelerate the coming of the day when they can’t make money on selling movies or TV shows any longer.

C’mon Jobs. What more is it gonna take? How much more do you need to see? Leave the DRM shit behind. Don’t screw us over like that. Forget about tying your customers to iTunes first & foremost. If you give them the easiest way ever seen, to record their own pre-owned or already freely obtained content, then – just as with audio & the iPod – everything ‘video’ will fall into place.

All you have to do is JUST DO IT

# 60 GregA said, on September 2nd, 2007 at 12:51 am

#59,

So what you are saying is that Apple should copy the Vista+xbox combo.

Um, right.

Now it is becoming clear why NBC is dumping the inferior iTunes video store, and jumping ship to the superior xbox marketplace.

Gottcha.

# 61 pedro said, on September 2nd, 2007 at 2:48 am

#59 at least you’re clear that Jobs wants to screw you. That’s a start.

# 62 Lauren the Ghoti said, on September 2nd, 2007 at 8:39 am

Odyssey67 -

Ya. Apple very much has dropped the ball on many aspects of this whole media revolution. Plenty of things they should be doing, and some that they shouldn’t.

But even with their many fuckups, they’re still on top and poised to remain there – because the others fuck up so much more.

# 63 pedro said, on September 2nd, 2007 at 10:39 am

#62 Is that the reason why the other fuck-ups have bogger market share than mac?

# 64 GregA said, on September 2nd, 2007 at 12:10 pm

#63,

Actually all this is happening right now for a reason. In a couple of weeks Apple will be announcing a new video iPod, I am sure to much hyperbole in the Apple friendly blogosphere. A place filled with personalities that like to hear themselves talk(when they are not complaining). Otherwise, Apples demographic. By moving now, the media companies will seriously blunt the coming apple PR stunt. Who cares about the next gen video ipod when there is no content for it?

From other things happening, look for FOX to announce they are dumping iTunes in the coming weeks as well. The pattern is clear now. They launch programs on the XBox, then with a couple of weeks sales they lose interest in iTunes sales potential. Basically because Apple has so far failed to deliver a seamless path to the living room television set with mass market appeal.

Oddly Apples business decisions seem more motivated more by Steve Jobs pride than any other factor. Just look at the Apple TV, it is apparent now that piece of shit was designed to fail so Steve Jobs could say to the networks with maniacal eye, “SEE our consumers are not interested in watching tv in their living room, because their living room television is not an elegant Macintosh computer!”

But mostly this is happening as a result of Apples near total failure to capitalize on iTunes video. The fact of the matter is, the all important male 18-49 demographic (read “people with money”) are more than willing to rent HD download movies for $5 a pop, and buy a HD television show for $5 an episode. My proof of this the xbox media center has, in less than a year, become the dominant movie download service as well as the dominant HD on demand server (besting not only apple in total downloads, but besting the CABLE companies in HD downloads).

It is unfortunate for the bloggosphere, that during these very public negotiations they have shown their true colors. Which is, they want their tv shows without commercials and free. I am certain that the cacaphony of posters threating to use bittorent instead of pay for content is not lost on these media companies.

# 65 pedro said, on September 2nd, 2007 at 2:45 pm

#64 I think you’re onto something. Maybe NBC saw that they could perfectly well do their bussiness thru Xbox (at the same price or above the price they had with oy!Tunes, doesn’t matter) and instead of dumping them flat out, they just gave them a really absurd new price scheme and forced the exit from mac. This way, it would be seen as mac throwing them out, and not NBC dumping mac.

If this is the case, it has been a brilliant move. Don’t know what their future sales would reflect, but mac has already accused the punch. Just that statement about NBC video content being 40% of their video download….ouch! that must hurt. Let’s see if, as you say, other will follow. It’s shaping into quite an interesting subject to keep an eye on.

And about the new oy!Pods, I can only laugh at them. The day they can show me a wireless 2TB (yes, Tera Bytes) media player (which I just turned my old pocketpc phone into and my wife’s 2002 pocketpc), then I MAY start to to see them with a little less pitty. But, as always, mac needs to play catch-up.

# 66 Resedit said, on September 2nd, 2007 at 6:19 pm

Hello!! How about reading NBC as MSNBC!!! Look
hard enough and you’ll find Microsoft behind this.
I suspect Microsoft thinks they can handle the sales
and take it away from Apple.

Leave Your Reply Below...

Comment Moderation is Active, so if your comment doesn't
show up immediately, please don't submit it again.

Special Deals 4U

25% off eHarmony subscription with code EHTECH
12-percent discount forever with code TECH
10-percent discount and free month using TECH10
10-percent or 30 dollars off weekly car rental!
Get 10-percent discount on car rental!
Get 10% off rental cars!
Get 10% off Dollar rentals!
Discounts on domain names!