While it is nice to read that Apple is taking its iTune application one step further, enabling an all you can watch mentality for a subscription price. And for those consuming lots of on demand content on their iPhones and iPods, it may be a more economical model. "iTunes users can already buy individual movies and episodes of shows, but the monthly subscription-fee strategy takes square aim at cable companies, because subscribers wouldn't need them to deliver their favorite programs in bulk." Frankly, I don't see this as much of a competitive threat. I don't see these mobile devices as replacement to televisions.
What does appeal to me is the ability to augment your cable viewing experience with mobile. I recently found myself on a Sunday afternoon away from watching NFL football at home; instead, I was watching my son's little league game. Next to me at the field, a friend had his blackberry on, watching a live feed of the Giant-Eagles game. I immediately wished I had the same service. Direct TV offers this mobile connection; slingbox does as well. Does cable have anything to fear from iTunes - no; but they do need to bring their TV Everywhere concept into the 21st century and use a slingbox like approach to bring your cable subscription to your other platforms. The distributor that does the better job of enabling and marketing that application will see their market share rise.
