Apple in Talks With Discovery and Viacom Over Streaming TV Service

Discovery and Viacom are in discussions with Apple to be included in its rumored streaming TV service, reports The Wall Street Journal. The partnerships could see mid-tier channels such as Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, TLC, MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon available through the subscription-based service on devices including the iPhone, iPad and Apple TV.

apple tv
The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that Apple is planning to launch a streaming TV service anchored by American networks ABC, CBS and Fox. The rumored service would offer a lightweight package of about 25 channels for between $30 to $40 per month. Apple is expected to announce the service at WWDC in June ahead of a September launch, according to the report.

Rumors of Apple working on a streaming TV service have circulated since at least 2009, when it was reported that CBS and Walt Disney were considering participating in the web-based service. Later reports indicated that Apple had ambitious plans to launch the service in the second half of 2012, but those plans have yet to materialize nearly three years later, likely due to roadblocks with content providers.

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Available Next Month With These 8 New Features

Tuesday November 11, 2025 9:48 am PST by
Apple released the first iOS 26.2 beta last week. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics in Apple Music, and more. In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date....
m1 chip slide

Five Years of Apple Silicon: M1 to M5 Performance Comparison

Monday November 10, 2025 1:08 pm PST by
Today marks the fifth anniversary of the Apple silicon chip that replaced Intel chips in Apple's Mac lineup. The first Apple silicon chip, the M1, was unveiled on November 10, 2020. The M1 debuted in the MacBook Air, Mac mini, and 13-inch MacBook Pro. The M1 chip was impressive when it launched, featuring the "world's fastest CPU core" and industry-leading performance per watt, and it's only ...
iphone pocket%402x

Apple Debuts iPhone Pocket, a Limited Edition iPod Sock-Style Accessory

Tuesday November 11, 2025 1:23 am PST by
Apple has teamed up with Japanese fashion house ISSEY MIYAKE to launch iPhone Pocket, a 3D-knitted limited edition accessory designed to carry an iPhone, AirPods, and other everyday items. The accessory is like a stretchy pocket, not unlike an iPod Sock, but elongated to form a strap made of a ribbed, elastic textile that fully encloses an iPhone yet allows you to glimpse the display...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, and AirPods 4

Thursday November 13, 2025 11:35 am PST by
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3, the AirPods 4, and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 firmware is 8B21, all up from the prior 8A358 firmware released in October. There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods 4 with ANC, and AirPods Pro 3...
homepod mini colors

New HomePod Mini Coming Soon With These Features

Tuesday November 11, 2025 7:30 am PST by
Apple is expected to announce a new HomePod mini imminently, headlining with new chips. Here are all of the new features we're expecting. The second-generation HomePod mini is highly likely to contain a more up-to-date chip for more advanced computational audio and improved responsiveness. The current HomePod mini is equipped with the Apple Watch Series 5's S5 chip from 2019. Apple is likely ...
ios 26 digital id passport wallet

Apple Announces Launch of U.S. Passport Feature in iPhone's Wallet App

Wednesday November 12, 2025 9:15 am PST by
Apple today announced that iPhone users can now create a Digital ID in the Apple Wallet app based on information from their U.S. passport. To create and present a Digital ID based on a U.S. passport, you need: An iPhone 11 or later running iOS 26.1 or later, or an Apple Watch Series 6 or later running watchOS 26.1 or later Face ID or Touch ID and Bluetooth turned on An Apple Account ...
homepod mini thumb feature

New HomePod Mini, Apple TV, and AirTag Were Expected This Year — Where Are They?

Wednesday November 12, 2025 11:42 am PST by
While it was rumored that Apple planned to release new versions of the HomePod mini, Apple TV, and AirTag this year, it is no longer clear if that will still happen. Back in January, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple planned to release new HomePod mini and Apple TV models "toward the end of the year," while he at one point expected a new AirTag to launch "around the middle of 2025." Yet,...
Tesla Charging

Tesla Working to Add Apple CarPlay Support to Vehicles

Thursday November 13, 2025 8:31 am PST by
Tesla is working to add support for Apple CarPlay in its vehicles, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. Tesla vehicles rely on its own infotainment software system, which integrates vehicle functions, navigation, music, web browsing, and more. The automaker has been an outlier in foregoing support for Apple CarPlay, which has otherwise become an industry standard feature, allowing users to...
iphone air thinness

iPhone Air Sales Are So Bad That Apple's Delaying the Next-Generation Version

Monday November 10, 2025 11:41 am PST by
The thin, light iPhone Air sold so poorly that Apple has decided to delay the launch of the next-generation iPhone Air that was scheduled to come out alongside the iPhone 18 Pro, reports The Information. Apple initially planned to release a new iPhone Air in fall 2026, but now that's not going to happen. Since the iPhone Air launched in September, there have been reports of poor sales...
CarPlay Pinned Messages

iOS 26.2 Adds New CarPlay Setting

Thursday November 13, 2025 6:48 am PST by
iOS 26 extended pinned conversations in the Messages app to CarPlay, for quick access to your most frequent chats. However, some drivers may prefer the classic view with a list of individual conversations only, and Apple now lets users choose. Apple released the second beta of iOS 26.2 this week, and it introduces a new CarPlay setting for turning off pinned conversations in the Messages...

Top Rated Comments

carjakester Avatar
139 months ago
Apple should be in talks with Apple to make a new Apple TV!
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
keifer.street Avatar
139 months ago
Same Old Bundle BS - You Pay For What You Don't Watch

How is this rumored streaming Apple service (or others like Sling TV) any different from any other cable company or business models of content providers of the past? "But, but, it's a smaller bundle, so it's cheaper!"

So what?! I ask again, how is this model any different than the past? I thought we were on the eve of an industry revolution, not evolution or a re-hashing of the same thing that consumers clearly DON'T want. Smaller bundles is just more of the same, with more limited networks/content providers.

It's the same 'bundle' model cable companies have had for years that they're holding onto with their cold, dead, out of touch, greedy fingers.
I want ala carte channel subscriptions of live/streaming TV, dammit! Let the free market decide which channels are worth paying for! Stop forcing us to pay for channels that nobody wants to watch! It's madness! All TV customers have been begging... literally BEGGING for this for YEARS.

I will only call it a revolution when I get what I want:
1) I want to pay only for what I actually watch
2) I want to be able to watch whatever I want (meaning I can choose from a wide plethora of content providers), not limited to a select few networks
3) I want to watch whenever I want - I want to be able stream it live or stream it later after it airs. I don't want to have to organize my schedule around what show airs at whatever time. That's just stupid. I also don't want to have to remember to record it on my DVR or worry about running out of hard drive space. That's also stupid. Streaming is the way of the future, baby!
4) I want to be able to watch it on any device

In summary, all networks need to be streamable at any time from any device and no more bundling BS.

Now that would be a game-changer. We'd no longer be stuck in 1970.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TXCherokee Avatar
139 months ago
How is this rumored streaming Apple service (or others like Sling TV) any different from any other cable company or business models of content providers of the past? "But, but, it's a smaller bundle, so it's cheaper!"

So what?! I ask again, how is this model any different than the past? I thought we were on the eve of an industry revolution, not evolution or a re-hashing of the same thing that consumers clearly DON'T want. Smaller bundles is just more of the same, with more limited networks/content providers.

It's the same 'bundle' model cable companies have had for years that they're holding onto with their cold, dead, out of touch, greedy fingers.
I want ala carte channel subscriptions of live/streaming TV, dammit! Let the free market decide which channels are worth paying for! Stop forcing us to pay for channels that nobody wants to watch! It's madness! All TV customers have been begging... literally BEGGING for this for YEARS.

I will only call it a revolution when I get what I want:
1) I want to pay only for what I actually watch
2) I want to be able to watch whatever I want (meaning I can choose from a wide plethora of content providers), not limited to a select few networks
3) I want to watch whenever I want - I want to be able stream it live or stream it later after it airs. I don't want to have to organize my schedule around what show airs at whatever time. That's just stupid. I also don't want to have to remember to record it on my DVR or worry about running out of hard drive space. That's also stupid. Streaming is the way of the future, baby!
4) I want to be able to watch it on any device

In summary, all networks need to be streamable at any time from any device and no more bundling BS.

Now that would be a game-changer. We'd no longer be stuck in 1970.

You can already do all of that. It's called iTunes.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
lincolntran Avatar
139 months ago
I'll gladly sign up for Apple service so that I can get rid of those fugly stupid decades old UI from those cable/disk companies. It makes me frustrated every time I have to navigate.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Elbon Avatar
139 months ago
$30 - $40 per month still seems pretty steep to me. I currently have Netflix (which is $8/month) and TiVo (which costs me nothing since I bought the "lifetime" subscription up front and have long-since broken even on that). So I'd struggle to justify paying up to 5 times as much for content that I don't really need. That's why I "cut the cord" to begin with. If this rumored service is also ad-driven, there's even less incentive to subscribe to it.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
freediverx Avatar
139 months ago
A bundle of a few networks, many of which I'm not interested in, for $30-$40 is exactly why I dropped cable over 12 years ago.
This does sound promising, but I'm more a fan of the a la carte model - or something like it. Hoping for good things ...
Agreed. Most of these channels contain nothing but garbage, which is a key reason why people are watching less television than ever. Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, TLC, and MTV are but a shadow of what they used to be, now containing little more than crap reality shows about rednecks, faux celebrities, ghost hunters, and alien conspiracy nutjobs. Comedy Central might have been nice years ago, but with the departure of Steven Colbert and John Stewart, there won't be much worth watching there.

So what's next for Apple TV... QVC and the Trinity Broadcasting Network?

HBO is the single worthwhile addition.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)