Trudy Muller, a spokeswoman for Cupertino, California-based Apple, declined to comment. Outside of Jobs’s remarks in the book, Apple hasn’t acknowledged that it’s developing a TV set. And according to one person, it’s not guaranteed that Apple will release a television.
Until now, the company’s TV efforts have been limited to Apple TV, a small $99 gadget that plugs in to a television and gives users access to content from iTunes, Netflix Inc.’s streaming service and YouTube. Jobs had called it Apple’s “hobby,” rather than something designed to be a serious moneymaker.
Prototype Model
Munster said Apple also is investing in manufacturing facilities and securing supplies of LCD screens.
Apple’s introduction of the voice-command software Siri and Web-storage service iCloud also could be used for a future television, Munster said in a note to investors yesterday. Searching for Shows
One of Apple’s goals for a new TV is to let users more seamlessly search for a show or movie, said one of the people. Apple has considered adopting new business models for delivering video, including a subscription TV service, media executives said last year. Apple rose 3.3 percent to $405.77 at the close in New York yesterday. SoundJam Player
Robbin, the software engineer helping lead the TV effort, was hired in 2000 to develop iTunes after Apple bought the SoundJam digital music player he developed. ITunes, introduced in January 2001, became Apple’s digital hub for synchronizing music, video and applications across Apple’s devices, including the iPod, iPhone and iPad.
Robbin was among the Apple executives who helped persuade Jobs to allow computers running Microsoft Corp.’s Windows software to use iTunes, according to the biography, a move that helped the company add millions of new customers. Citing multiple sources, Bloomberg says Robbin's team has a prototype in the works right now, but there is still a possibility that Apple won't even release a television.
Robbin's involvement in the Apple television is notable. After joining Apple more than a decade ago to head up the company's iTunes product, Robbin also helped create the iPod, making him a key player in the firm's executive lineup.
Although talk of an Apple television has surfaced from time to time over the last few years, it has become a hot topic recently, due to comments made by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs prior to his death. That said, in an interview with CNET published yesterday, Isaacson tossed some cold water on hopes that an Apple television was nearing its launch, saying that Apple wasn't "close at all" to developing a television.
"iCloud stores TV shows and pictures, but we believe Apple may add movies," Munster said.
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