I try to keep these posts short, mostly because I don’t like to read long blog posts online. In that spirit, this might be a two or three-part post.
Lost in all the iPhone hype, in my opinion, has been AppleTV. For content producers, I think this is the real killer app. The mobile research firm Telephia released a report that states 8.4 million people in the US subscribed to mobile video services in the first quarter. That is a 155% increase over 2006, but it only represents 3.6% of all mobile subscribers.
Watching any video that lasts more than 60 seconds becomes less about the content, however, and more about the experience. Is watching an iPod screen or telephone screen for 10, 30 or 60 minutes really the best experience? While there are certain circumstances where we make concessions (plane flights, commuting to work via bus or train, etc.), if you really want to dig in and enjoy some video, obviously this experience leaves a lot to be desired. This, I think, is where AppleTV comes in. While the major networks are continuing to lose their primacy in favor of podcasters, at the end of the day (literally), we all want to watch this stuff on the couch on our TVs. AppleTV makes this possible at a very high quality.
THAT is the killer app.
