Front Row: Television Evolved?...

When Apple introduced the intel version of the Mac Mini in February, they bundled in an updated version of their media center application Front Row, as well as a new version of the Apple Remote Control. Currently, Front Row supports four categories of content: Music, Photos, DVDs, and streamed or local videos.

What isn’t a part of Front Row is an oft mentioned fifth category - television with TIVO-like capabilities. Front Row doesn’t give you the ability to watch or record TV. In an interview with USA Today, Apple’s VP of Marketing Phil Schiller says that adding TIVO-like capability would make the Mac Mini too complicated. While probably a bit overstated, I think he is telling the truth...

...but maybe not the whole truth.

I think Apple is looking to do something in this space, but something completely different. And I think it will be something dead simple.

When Apple launched the video enable iPod, there were just a handful of programs available for it. What programming there was (excluding music videos and movie trailers) came from two media firms - Disney and Pixar. In the half a year since the launch, there is now content from about 10 unique media firms representing over 16 distinct networks. This is significant growth for a new venture, and these numbers appear to be continuing to grow.

In my last post, I talked about Disney making some of its hit television shows available for free on the internet the day after they are broadcast. I also commented that I believe Apple’s Steve Jobs - now Disney’s largest shareholder and newest board member - may have had a role in making this happen. I believe that with Disney leading the way, other media companies will follow suit in the same way they did with selling programming on iTunes.

So what does all this have to do with Apple and Front Row?

I believe Apple will aggregate all of these ‘free’ streams and make them available via Front Row. This will be their ‘TV’ button. They will offer the next generation of ‘DVR’ - you wont need to schedule or record anything because it will all be recorded for you. Just pick what you want to watch after it has aired on the TV network. You can’t get any simpler than that!

This seems to have something for everyone...

The media companies should like this model since, unlike content that is time shifted via DVR’s, these programs will still have three one-minute commercials in them that can’t be skipped. It gives them a chance to build a unique brand on the web while still operating in an aggregated space just like consumers have today in the cable/satellite world. This could also let the media companies tie in to the iTunes infrastructure, letting their viewers have a simple ‘purchase to own’ experience, or potentially other commercial opportunities involving sponsors of a show.

Consumers should like this model since the content is just there for them with no effort or forethought. They can sample shows that they may not normally watch and see if they are interested. If they find a show mid-season that seems interesting they can ‘catch up’ by watching previous episodes. The same is true if they discover a new show via word of mouth. It is just an easy approach to accessing and exploring all this content. And if they have a Mac Mini hooked up to their TV set it will be a seamless TV viewing experience for them.

Apple should definitely like this model. It allows them to play a central role in this evolving media distribution space. It also lays the foundation for delivering true IP based programming from a wealth of sources. They could become the ‘program guide’ for media on the web - the ‘DVR’ with an infinite storage capacity. They could become the ‘go to’ place for both media companies and consumers - much the way iTunes is with music.

I don’t know if Apple actually intends to do this, but it seems to make a great deal of sense for all the parties involved. And while getting all the personalities at the large media companies to go along may take some effort, there is the potential to see something really great come out of it. It would be exciting to witness the evolution of an entirely new ‘television model - the time feels right to have it happen.

And Apple is the right company to actually pull it together and make it work.

Note: Check out Front Row on Apple’s website. Click on the ‘Videos’ link to see how they handle movie trailers today - and imagine television content there instead.