Apple TV Project Is Said To Be Led By iTunes Creator Jeff Robbin

bloomberg.com

1 point·Arjuna··4 comments

I hate to say it, but this isn't a good sign. iTunes is one of the worst abominations of user interface, design, and intuitiveness I've ever used.

There isn't a technology problem with tv. There is a business problem. The infrastructure for creating content costs more than users want to pay. Bad UIs are a symptom, not the disease.

The cost thing is a fallacy. Companies just want to make more money by forcing you into paying for their other channels.

As a platform, TV is horrible. I can't get the content I want and the content that is available is sporadic and often unavailable because of having only two tuners and scheduling conflicts.

The real problem is that it's a cartel. Easy money for the big companies. Why the heck do I need 15 religious channels and 20 home shopping channels? Let alone sports etc etc.

The TV business model is that customers pay for more than they consume. The bill keeps running while you're at work. The bill is the same if you go on vacation. It doesn't matter, because you pay in advance for more content than you can possibly ever consume.

That is the business model. That is the way it works. That you pay for shopping channels that you don't care for allows them to pay for expensive shows like Mad Men.

So what we need is real disruption in the TV business but that is not a new UI. It's a fundamental change in the way TV programming is financed.

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