Apple is working networks and studios to let the company stream TV shows as a rental for US$.99, slightly less than half the price that users can buy and download shows today from iTunes. NewTeeVee.com is the source of the newest Apple rumor, with the site citing anonymous and unspecified sources.
In other words, keep a bag of salt on hand in case you need quick access to individual grains when considering this story, though we will point out that even without anonymous sources, the move would be a logical one for the company.
According to the site, Apple would follow a similar model to that of its movie rental business through iTunes, one that would allow consumers up to 30 days to start watching the newly rented show. Once it’s begun, customers would have but 24 hours to finish it or rewatch it.
If Apple does launch such a service, it would put the company on more even footing with companies like Netflix and Hulu, both of which now offer for-fee streaming TV content to Macs, PCs, and even Apple’s own iOS devices.
There have been other rumors in the past about Apple looking to expand its TV content through iTunes, with the biggest having been a report from 2009 that said Apple was looking to deliver TV content for a monthly subscription, much the same way that cable operators do. Nothing has yet come from that rumor, though today’s twist could be an offshoot from those same efforts.