Comcast and NBC... Only Apple Can Stop It

image: NewLaunches.comIt hasn't been nearly the news story it should be, but Comcast has been in talks to buy NBC for quite some time now. About a month ago, it looked like the whole thing fell through, but lately, rumblings of a purchase have re-surfaced.

This isn't like Disney owning ABC, or News Corp owning Fox. As we all know, Comcast is the tv and cable pipeline for a large portion of the country. Put yourself in the shoes of CBS, or any of the other networks. Imagine relying on your own competitor to beam your channel into millions of homes. Comcast could decide it's not worth it to carry Lifetime, or ABC Family (both parts of ABC) in favor of two new NBC channels. Your future as a broadcaster/network would lie squarely in the hands of the enemy.

Maybe that's why Apple has chosen this time to start shopping around monthly subscription options for television. You wouldn't expect the other networks to get on board, but in the face of the looming Comcast/NBC merger potential, it would make sense to find another distribution method.

While I said Apple could stop it, on their own, they wouldn't stop it as much as offer another option for consumers and other networks. They could lobby the FCC though, to keep the deal from going through. Would that be in Apple's best interest though? Would they be better served by being an alternative to the NBC/Comcast coalition? What about consumers?

Let us know what you think in the comments...

Five Things Apple Could Be Doing With The New Data Center, But Probably Isn't

Apple is ready to setup shop with a data center in North Carolina. Sure, it could be to simply add capacity to existing services, but let's look at some of the more exotic, yet within the realm of possibility, uses for it:

1. Mobile Me For Everyone

The internet has changed a lot since Apple first offered .mac/iTools, the predecessors to MobileMe. For one thing, there are more free online options for just about everything. Apple has re-positioned MobileMe, but the true advantage of it would come from Apple returning to its roots, and making MobileMe a free component of owning a Mac, or iPhone (since it has that Find My iPhone feature, etc.) Apple actually has a tremendous advantage here due to the size of its marketshare. Microsoft would be hard-pressed to offer a similar service to 90% of the computers on the planet. Then again, they seem to ok with hotmail/msn. Imagine an online version of time machine. Sure things like bandwidth limits could get in the way, but wouldn't be great to know you had offsite backup without another utility?

2. Live Video Streaming

One of the "missing pieces" in making Apple's living room "hobby" a full-fledged profit generator is live sports and entertainment. Think about the possibilities if Apple could give you the live programming you see now on broadcast television, and bring fresh new offerings as well. Like what? Oh, perhaps the yearly WWDC keynote and other Apple events for starters. Apple has been a big customer of Akamai through the years, but a full-on live video push would most likely require a new, proprietary approach.

3. TV subscription model

Of course along with live programming, Apple needs to find a way to offer a wide variety of content at an affordable price. Rumblings this week point to a $30/month price point for something. Whether that's to get one network's programming, or replicate your entire cable lineup, makes a big difference, but either move would bring Apple directly into the cable/satellite company's business. 

4. Cloud Apps

The days of apps on the desktop are numbered. At least that's what we've been hearing for years. Apple is great at letting others go first, learn from those mistakes, then offering something uniquely different, and often successful. (iPhone or iPod, anyone?) If a tablet device is in the works, it won't have the hard drive of your desktop, but it could have a decent processor, video card, etc. What if programs like iPhoto ran "in the cloud", allowing you to run the app on the tablet, seeing/editing your photos from your desktop (or online storage) in the same room, or across the globe.

5. Push Servers/Gaming

Given the success of the app store, it wouldn't be too surprising to see Apple add more capacity for push servers for apps. A more exciting move would be the development of games for a new tablet (are we getting ahead of ourselves?) and/or the AppleTV. AppleTV could become a cable box and game console challenger, all in one package.

Apple Does The Right Thing

image: apple.comPart of our daily grind here is to look at all the developments surrounding Apple, both positive and negative. Usually the negative ones are far more interesting. Today though, we wanted to highlight a piece of news that broke yesterday on ifoAppleStore. According to their sources, Apple will begin offering full health benefits to part-time retail employees who work at least 15 hours/week, and who have worked at Apple for more than a year.

Apple will pay the same (roughly) 65% of health premiums that they pay for full-time employees. Granted, the cost of healthcare being what it is, that other 35% would really eat into the salary of a 15 hour-a-week employee, but for some people who might be working several part-time jobs, or freelancers/creatives who have a tough time securing affordable insurance, this could make a huge difference for them.

Kudos, Apple.

Apple Introduces New iMac, Mac Mini, MacBook, and MacBook Pro

In what has to be one of the longest waits for a product refresh that everyone knew was coming, Apple has updated the iMac, Mac Mini, and the MacBook and Macbook Pro.

The refreshed iMac can be configured up to a 2.66 GHz Intel Core i5 processor (quad-core) with a 1TB hard drive, all yours for the price of $1999. Of note is the new 21.5" model starting at $1499.

The Mac mini ranges from $599 to $999.  The bit of a surprise here is the inclusion of server-centric model ,  the new Mac Mini with Snow Leopard Server , the  2.53GHz: Dual 500GB has 4GB of memory and the Mac OS X Server Snow Leopard, for $999.

The new MacBook comes as a 13-in model, for only $999. Includes: durable unibody enclosure, built-in 7-hour battery, an LED-backlit display and a glass Multi-Touch trackpad.  

The MacBook Pro starts at $1199, with the 17-inch 2.8GHz, Intel Core 2 Duo, 500GB hard drive coming in at $2499.

We sort of expected an Apple TV update.  Not bad all around...we might just need to test out the new mini here in the studio soon!

TDL Live This Week: (10/19 - 10/25)

There's a slight chance you were watching something else last night, and missed TDL Live. Hey, it happens. Here's your chance to get caught up on all the Apple and tech news of the week, including Apple's earnings results, iPhone piracy, Steve Jobs' popularity, and much more...