Analysts, pundits and fans alike all seem to believe that Apple is secretly planning to introduce an HDTV revolution soon -- but instead of an actual hardware television set, what if the revolution was already right here in front of us?
AllThingD has published a fascinating op-ed from Brightcover founder, chairman and CEO Jeremy Allaire on Monday, which intelligently looks at the Apple HDTV rumors from another angle: What if AirPlay, coupled with the Apple TV and an iPad, is what the late co-founder Steve Jobs was referring to in his biography?
Ever since Walter Isaacson's official biography went on sale late last year, speculation has run rampant about what Jobs meant when he told the author Apple had finally "cracked the code" for television. However, Allaire seems to feel that the company may already have all of the pieces necessary to revolutionize the television business and is slowly weaving them together into a cohesive whole.
"In my humble opinion, the entire debate over whether Apple ships an actual TV set and introduces some updated iTunes video package is a complete sideshow for a broader and bigger phenomenon and transformation for how we all use TV, and that this transformation is already being rolled out by Apple," Allaire explains.
Allaire elaborates that Apple may simply view an HDTV as "high-quality audio/video rendering devices," while the real power "lies in application platforms and user interaction devices that can be easily brought to bear on those monitors."
"But rather that putting Apple software directly into the TV, they are bringing your existing Apple devices and applications to the TV set without requiring you to buy a new TV monitor," the CEO adds. "In short, the iPhone and iPad in your pocket or handbag is the next-generation TV set-top box, and it is both highly personal and highly social and capable of bringing hundreds of thousands and soon millions of rich interactive applications and experiences onto your TV set."
Of course, this theory is all built around AirPlay, the wireless service added to iOS 5 which holds a lot of Apple's promise for the future of television. Allaire believes that instead of focusing on a hardware HDTV, Cupertino plans to continue "pulling the string" (as CEO Tim Cook explained it last week) with the Apple TV and AirPlay.
Allaire's comments make a lot of sense, and the entire article is well worth a read for anyone interested in Apple's plans for the living room.
Follow this article's author, J.R. Bookwalter on Twitter
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