Apple TV: 8 reasons to believe (or not) - 1

The Apple TV is a persistent rumor for years. More persistent in recent months has led to all kinds of analysis, consulting firmsand experts in TV. However, Apple has never given the slightestclue as to the possibility for the Apple brand to get into an area that is unknown. The Cupertino company may it bring new life to a market that tends to stagnate? Is there still something to be invented on the side of our beloved TV? On the one hand many points suggest that Apple TV could land in the coming months. On the other,heavy arguments work against such a novelty. Here are four for and four against evaluating the possibility of a launch of AppleTV.

Apple has never really been afraid to launch a product in an area which was previously unknown. Among the greatest achievements of the Cupertino include the iPod, the iPad, and of course the iPhone. Each time, the American firm brought its share of new and imposed his personal touch. However, none of these markets were mature at the launch of Apple product.

For the television sector, there is a market already well established: the vast majority of households that can afford it already have. And given the investment it represents, it is not clear that users rush to renew their equipment. Or it would mean that Apple provides a real evolution in television.

A product too expensive to manufacture

Apple has always applied significant margins on its products. But adapting this model on TV is complicated. TV is expensive to produce and manufacturers' margins on the market today are particularly low. So Sony should be displayed for the eighth consecutive year of losses for its television section. For its part, Philips has sold 70% of the TV industry, which had accumulated nearly one billion euros in losses since early 2007.

This year, Panasonic also announced the cessation of production in Japan of the majority of LCD panels for televisions. Ditto for some of the Plasma of the Japanese brand. Sharp finally redirects the production of slabs to the professional market, smartphones and tablets. "The TV smaller than 40 inches are no longer profitable for anyone," says CEO of Sharp, Mikio Katayama.

Before these three manufacturers, JVC and Pioneer had also thrown in the towel in the production of televisions. If Korean manufacturers LG and Samsung seem to draw their game, the numbers of their profit margins for this section are not known.

Many unfounded rumors

Rumors about a possible Apple TV was designed by many, sometimes wacky, often wrong. The last evoked a September launch of a range of televisions. Missed. Another rumor, which quoted Samsung as probable supplier of tiles for the Apple TV screen. However, the two giants of the high-tech Cold War are now (if not cold), which significantly impairs a possible partnership for a project of this magnitude. Considering the market for the production of large screens, there remains little that LG could meet the demand for Apple.

In 2007, AppleInsider said already that the event of 9 January would be an opportunity to announce an iTV, "a logical extension of the iPod and iTunes," according to the U.S. site. This will ultimately be the Apple TV, which we know the (thin) success.

Failures Google TV and Apple TV

The previous Google TV is probably one of the biggest arguments about Apple's reluctance to produce a TV. Of course, it's just a case that directly competes Apple TV, by no means a complete product including the screen. But Google's partnership with Sony to market connected TV is a failure: the public has never caught. Two other manufacturers have tried, with as little success in this type of project. Dell, in 2005, attempted to engage in the manufacture of HDTV, without success. Earlier, the Gateway brand computer proposed in 2003, a screen 42-inch HD Plasma at a price of $ 4 000: another failure.