NBC ends contract with iTunes
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NBC Universal has decided not to renew  its contract to sell television shows on iTunes, becoming the  second major media company to challenge Apple Inc&#39;s dominance  in digital entertainment.
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Amazon has agreed to give NBC Universal something that Apple would not: greater flexibility in the pricing and packaging of video downloads.
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(InfoWorld) - Contract negotiations between Apple and NBC Universal regarding video content in iTunes are getting nastier and staying public. In a statement, NBC disputes Apple's characterization of the companies' contract renegotiation and says that its TV programs will be available on iTunes through early December. Late last week,Â Apple said that NBC wanted to increase the price for its video contentÂ so much that iTunes would have to sell individual TV shows for $4.99, instead of $1.99, like the rest of the available programs. Because Apple wasn't willing to agree to that price hike, NBC declined to renew its contract, Apple said. So that it wouldn't have to stop selling programs in December -- the middle of the TV season -- when their contract ends, Apple said it wouldn't offer any NBC shows for the upcoming season. But Apple may have a bigger battle on its hands if it does pull those shows from the iTunes video store. In its statement, NBC said that all returning series including new episodes would be available on iTunes through the end of the contract. NBC also said that rather than asking to double the wholesale price of its programs as Apple contends, it wanted to offer end-users more flexible pricing, including bundling packages of shows for a set price. Apple has mostly stuck to a policy of flat pricing despite pressure from content owners to allow for variable pricing. The exception is in the music store where a selection of songs that come without copy protection cost more. Both companies took jabs at each other in their statements. Apple called NBC's suggested pricing change a "dramatic price increase." NBC responded thus: "It is clear that Apple's retail pricing strategy for its iTunes service is designed to drive sales of Apple devices, at the expense of those who create the content that make these devices worth buying." NBC also sells programs on Amazon.com and very soon plans to start offering its shows and others for free on Hulu.com, a joint venture company with News Corp. So far, sales in the iTunes video store are relatively low. During 2007, the store should generate about $300 million, according to estimates from Forrester Research.
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NBC will start offering limited free downloads of shows such as "Heroes" and "The Office" as part of its bid to expand the digital distribution of its programs and compete with Apple Inc.'s iTunes Store, the network announced Wednesday.
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Apple announced Friday that it would not add any new episodes of NBC television shows to the online storeâs inventory, as the companiesâ dispute over pricing continued.
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NBC Universal is ending  production on its low-rated daytime talk show "In the Loop With  iVillage."
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NBC Universal has decided against renewing its contract to sell digital downloads of television shows on Apple Inc's iTunes after failing to come to an agreement on pricing, the New York Times reported in its online edition on Friday.
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Ending speculation that it would follow NBC Universal's lead in pulling its programs from Apple's iTunes, News Corp president Peter Cherin said the company had no plans to do so.
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NBC Universal has dropped its breach of contract lawsuit against former "Access Hollywood" anchor Pat O'Brien, which it filed July 13 after he quit to join a rival showbiz gossip show.
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Following a row between the two companies, Apple said it would refuse to sell NBC's shows debuting this fall, but they are there anyway.
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NBC Universal has decided not to renew its contract to sell television shows on iTunes, becoming the second major media company to challenge Apple Inc's dominance in digital entertainment.
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RealNetworks Inc. is ending a temporary promotion that slashed the price of its downloadable songs to 49 cents, but bargain hunters will still be able to find some deals at its online music store.
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NEW YORK - Apple Inc. escalated a dispute with NBC Universal over the pricing of TV shows by saying yesterday it would not sell any of NBC's programs for this fall season on iTunes.
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NBC will start offering limited free downloads of shows such as Heroes and The Office as part of its bid to expand the digital distribution of its programs
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NBC is pulling the plug on its comedy "The Men's Room."
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NBC Universal is ready to kill off digital distribution of its programs through iTunes.
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[Seattle | Reuters News Service, 10 September 2004] - RealNetworks is ending its 49c-per-song music download service but will keep the promotional prices in place for top 10 songs, the Internet media and software company said yesterday.