In 2010 we first heard rumblings about Apple manufacturing its very own connected HDTV. Then, we heard about it again in 2011. Same thing happened in 2012. And again in 2013.
So it’s only fitting that 2014 is not yet half over and we’re once again hearing about this long-rumored Apple product.
So why now? The rumor’s rebound comes on the heels of another rumor which holds that Apple is on the verge of coughing up $3.2 billion for headphones maker and streaming music service Beats.
According to the well-publicized suspicions this week of famed Steve Jobs biographer Walter Isaacson, it’s clear why Apple wants Beats. Isaacson thinks the Apple-Beats deal is “not about headphones or streaming music but rather is about video.”
He speculates that Cook wants Iovine to run Apple’s content business and help Apple launch the TV product that analysts have been gossiping about for years. The product has been held up because Apple can’t get all the content owners on board.
Billboard, which first report the rumor, hints that if a connected HDTV product lies ahead (for real this time), Apple will need to have its ducks in a row (and a ton of content providers on board) in order to make the new product a success. And that could be why Apple is willing to spend north of $3 billion on Beats.
