Apple is indeed working on a new set-top that will let people will watch both live and on-demand TV, but won’t have it ready until sometime in 2015, a source indicates. Engineers at the company are allegedly being told not to expect to ship the device this year, and working along that timeline. The issue is claimed to be cable companies “dragging their heels,” and the possible Comcast/Time Warner Cable merger, which together are interfering not only with the device but a matching TV service.
Both halves of the equation have been rumored for some time; at one point talk centered around a full-scale TV set, rather than just a new set-top box. Many reports have suggested that cable companies and content providers have been hesistant because of lucrative existing deals, and in the case of the cable providers, the money made off of channel packages. Apple is thought to want something more “à la carte.”
