Apple Inc. (AAPL) & Google Inc (GOOG)’s Competing Visions For TV

The following video is from this week’s installment of The Motley Fool’s Weekly Tech Review, in which Alison Southwick sits down with analysts Eric Bleeker and Lyons George to look at the biggest stories driving the tech sector this week.

The future of television was once again in focus this week. First off, there was a report from former Wall Street Journal reporter Jessica Lessin that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is actively pitching a television service that would allow viewers to skip ads but would offer compensation back to television networks for the skipped ads.

Not to be outdone, reports also surfaced that Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) has been actively pitching an online TV service to media companies. Both of these reports come hot on the heels of Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC)‘s own negotiations to offer an Internet-based television service through an internally designed set-top box.

As Eric and Lyons discuss in the following video, all of these services show one thing in common: no cost savings for consumers. They’re all focused around more “premium ideas” for the future of television. Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) has reportedly been offering as much as 75% more than the rates channels currently receive from cable. Likewise, Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)’s deal isn’t focused on cost savings, and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s has built-in costs for commercial skipping. Instead, the “selling point” for all these services is on a better experience for the television viewer, whether through ideas like ad-skipping or more intuitive user interfaces. No one has ever accused today’s cable programming menus of being works of art, which leaves room for technology companies like Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) to improve the television experience.

That means consumers hoping to see an “un-bundling” of cable will very likely be disappointed by whatever final deal companies like Intel and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) can strike. The future of television will likely be a better experience, but with media companies holding firm in negotiations, it won’t be cheaper either. To see Eric and Lyons’ full thoughts, watch the video.

The article The Battle for Your TV Heats Up: Apple and Google’s Competing Visions originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Eric Bleeker, CFA, Lyons George, and Alison Southwick.

Alison Southwick owns shares of Apple. Eric Bleeker, CFA, and Lyons George have no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Apple and Google and owns shares of Apple, Google, and Microsoft.

Copyright © 1995 – 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.