Apple quiet on rumours to launch a line of television sets

APPLE fights growing speculation it's about to launch a line of TV sets, refusing to comment on "rumours".

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APPLE is fighting off speculation it is about to launch its own line of television sets.

Multiple reports are claiming the technology company is producing its own line of televisions and is planning to launch a subscription service combining the best aspects of iTunes and cable TV.

The Wall Street Journal said sources familiar with the matter claimed Apple was "working on new technology to deliver video to televisions, and has been discussing whether to try to launch a subscription TV service”.

Piper Jaffray financial adviser Gene Munster said the signs were everywhere.

In a note to investors, the analyst predicted that Apple’s iCloud storage service made the idea of an Apple-branded tv service even more plausible, Apple Insider reported.

“Apple's iCloud service for media storage makes it easier to own multiple devices and share content among them," he wrote.

"At first the only media iCloud will store is music and pictures, but we believe Apple may add movies and TV shows purchased or rented in iTunes to the iCloud service, which could be viewed on a TV."

Mr Munster also said Apple’s numerous television-related patents were a sign they planned to enter the TV sphere.

Another sign – the technology company spent $3.9 billion on supply contracts for component parts – of what remains a mystery.

Apple's new chief executive Tim Cook wouldn’t reveal what specific components they were buying because he wanted to maintain the company's competitive advantage.

"(It's) something I don't want our competition knowing".

Mr Munster believed $3.9 billion would be ample funds to buy LCD technology.

But it is still not known how licensing would apply to Apple TV if it reached Australia's highly regulated shores.

Australian Communications and Media Authority media manager Emma Rossie told news.com.au that as IPTV continues to develop - we’re “moving from dumb TV to smart TV”.

“ACMA is closely observing this area," she said.

“Indeed it has recently released its Broken Concepts paper which highlights this convergence issue.”

Unsurprisingly, Apple is keeping mum about any plans to move into the TV sphere.

IPTV has struggled to gain traction the past year.

In May, Apple announced it was in negotiations with film and television studios to allow users to re-download purchased content across multiple devices - but negotiations have so far been unsuccessful.

Four out of the six top movie producers wouldn’t sign the deal.

Google has also launched its own internet TV service (originally entitled “Google TV”) in October last year which allows users to combine web and TV content on a television screen via a browser but it was blocked by the major networks in the US and received luke-warm reviews.

A spokeswoman for Apple said only, "Apple does not comment on rumour and speculation. "