Edible Apple

Bloomberg says the obvious when it says not to expect an Apple HDTV anytime in 2012 due to Apple’s difficulties in securing content and licensing deals with a host of cable providers.

Interestingly though, the report notes that engineers at Apple have been working on methods to “reinvent TV viewing” going as far back as 2005.

“Since the middle of the last decade, Apple’s engineers have been working on a more advanced product to allow viewers to quickly find shows and movies, blending both live and recorded material…,” the report notes. “It would recommend content based on interests and work seamlessly with Apple’s family of other devices. An iPhone or iPad would double as a remote control, the people said.”

Apple is vying with the likes of Google,  Microsoft  and Amazon.com Inc. to make TVs the digital hub of people’s lives in an industry projected to reach $200 billion worldwide by 2017. Whoever wins must first strike deals with media companies or cable providers who have little incentive to cede valuable revenue streams. The result: Apple won’t be releasing a new TV product this year, as analysts had predicted, said a person familiar with the company’s plans…

In recent negotiations, the main stumbling blocks with cable companies have included a tussle for control over the software that determines the screen interface — the look and feel of the viewer’s experience, said people familiar with the discussions. That’s also what TiVo has been offering for more than a decade with its hard drive-equipped set-top box that allows viewers to easily record broadcasts and, more recently, stream Internet fare. TiVo’s growth, though, has been stymied by fierce resistance from cable TV providers.

Another point of contention, the report notes, centers on rumors of an Apple set top box. Apparently there is an argument as to whether said box should be sold directly to consumers or leased to consumers via the cable providers.

Also of note is a quip from Steve Jobs that Apple’s foray into the TV market would not be disruptive unless they could also enable live broadcasting. In other words, a glorified Apple TV with enhanced on-demand style features just isn’t going to cut it.

Check out the full scoop on Apple’s HDTV plans over here.