Why Apple TV is Not Valuable for Indian Customer
The Apple TV is finally in India. The prodigal content based service from the infamous iStore is being launched at a price of INR 7900 in India. The Apple TV was initially developed at Apple purely as a hobby, but the product was too tempting to be just a hobby and was finally released as Apple’s very own Apple TV. While the name seems to suggest a television, Apple TV is nothing in those lines of thought. For the uninitiated it is just a content service not much unlike your DTH set top box, with the difference being that it brings the most high defined contents like movies, music and photo streams straight into your widescreen television alongwith the services of iTunes, iCloud and photostream.
The Apple TV has definitely had a good stint in its already existing markets such as the US market. However with the launch in India, the question stands as to whether the product will see highly scaled sales and popularity like the iPhone or it will just be yet another launch in the content provider market.
The initial reaction at anything Apple is of course one of intrigue and the promise of a great product. But with the Apple TV, the question stands as to whether the popularity of the iPhone would be replicated, in the event of which the Apple TV might well be a competition to the DTH and cable services in India today or else in an alternative traction, the Apple TV might just prove to be of value to the eyes and be nothing more than a showpiece at an iStore near you.
Why? It’s because in India we still do not like to pay for everything we use. However before an elaboration on why the apple TV is not valuable for Indian Customer, let’s look into what the Apple TV actually brings to the table.
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The Apple TV definitely brings in one of the most extensive content services around to the drawing table and into your widescreen TV. The packaging of the contents and the utility of Apple’s iTunes, iCloud together is a definite plus that the Apple TV carries.
The Apple TV’s extensive content services and utilities include the following:
- Digital Collection On Airtime: Home Sharing feature on the Apple TV allows streaming songs, photos and home videos on the computer. Your entire digital collection over the air to your Apple TV.
- Exclusive Movie Content: The movie content available via the Apple TV is exclusive and highly extensive. It includes a huge line up of Hollywood titles as well as new releases. There is even the option of reading through quick film reviews before you rent the movies. The charges for the SD rentals stand at Rs.80 and for HD it stands at Rs.120
- Music Unlimited: The one line from Apple is this–“Fill your home with the music you love, straight from your Apple TV”. The music content available are those which you have purchased on iTunes. And in case of iTunes Match subscribers, music imported from CDs can also be played via the Apple TV.
- AirPlay and AirPlay Mirroring: The Apple TV not only provides content streaming from your system but also provides streaming from your iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. So already subscribed to content on any of these devices can be streamed and played right through the Apple TV.
(Image Credits: Deepak Keswani)
These and a few other content services that come packed in with the Apple TV surely makes its launch in India one of note. But is it meant for the Indian market to be precise. The Apple TV might be unique and special but it might not find a place in Indian living rooms soon. Why? Reasons galore.
Not Essentially A Valuable Must Have
The reason why the iPhone fares so good in India is because it is seen as a valuable must have in terms of its price value and its worth for value and of course it helps that it is highly exclusive in the market. But the same can hardly be said for the Apple TV. At an odd 8000 INR, the Apple TV has a high value definitely but is it a good worth for the money? I would say no, at least not immediately.
Yes, it does provide oodles of content that would be difficult to get in a single place but then if you would have noticed, every other content leads up to a paid subscription, like with the songs on iTunes or the movie rentals, which as a concept I daresay does not work in the Indian market. One could argue that such contents even on the iPhone are a paid service, but then that is not the only thing we get from an iPhone, unlike which in the Apple TV contents are the main stay.
[alert-announce]India Won’t Get All iOS 6 Features of Siri, Maps, Facebook And More[/alert-announce]It’s In India but Is It in India
The Apple TV has been launched in India, but the question stands as to whether it has arrived in India. Sick puns apart, the question is really into whether the Apple TV comes blended with the Indian market? For starters, its price tag of an odd almost 8000 INR is not something an average Indian would be subscribing to, for just a content service hub.
Secondly, while the product is definitely eye catchy and attractive, does it carry the compatibility required to suit utility bandwidths in India. Internet bandwidths are still not that efficient to support such services in India. Furthermore, the Apple TV might be into India but until and unless it is able to feature in the Indian television channel contents into its services, the point of getting it into your living room might not make much of sense.
The Apple TV is definitely a looked up to product launch in India, but it does not look to be a adopted by Indian Customers because it definitely does not seem to be in sync with Indian times of now. And of course there is always the truly Indian fact that we still do not like paying for everything we use.
About The Author: Rupam Gogoi works with FindYogi, which is working on its vision to be the best comparison shopping place in India and building products that support the commerce Eco-system. His major interests are alternate technologies, products and startups which he covers extensively. A writer, a human resources guy, a startup enthusiast, a wannabe singer and musician.
