Apple Inc released the Apple TV digital media extender to much fanfare in March. It enables users to sync their computer's iTunes collections across a wireless or wired home network to their living room. Think of the Apple TV as an iPod for your entertainment center. And it works beautifully: music, photos, podcasts, movies, and television shows are now connected to your high definition TV.
Thousands of consumers have bought the Apple TV and enjoyed it thus far for what it already does. But the future of the device might lie in capabilities yet to be announced, delivered over the Internet in software upgrades to the device.
One of the first additions we might see is the direct download and rental/purchase of television shows and movies. The primary constraint on all Apple products is their polish; the idea of streaming, jerky video is something to be avoided at all costs. To overcome that problem in direct downloads the videos will need to watchable within the first few seconds of streaming, requiring a multi-megabit connection to Apple's iTunes store.
It is unlikely Apple will add functionality that requires a purchase-and-wait method to viewing, so look for rental models to exist in the iTunes ecosystem pushed by the MPAA. The idea of having a queue, similar in design to Netflix's patented system, that contains a list of movies you want to watch is high on the list of likely developments. Once a movie is downloaded and watched, it will delete itself and begin streaming the next movie to the Apple TV's drive for future viewing.
Yet the rumors peg Netflix as readying its own set-top box for the living room, something we may see hit the marketplace before years end.
