After a very public rift, NBC and Apple are finally kaput. With its contract now expired, NBC has taken all of its shows off iTunes, with the exception of some NBC news podcasts. (No more CNBC, Sci-Fi Channel, Telemundo, or USA shows either). The move was expected.
See the list of TV networks featured on iTunes at right? NBC used to be right after National Geographic. Its absence leaves a very noticeable hole, and is a marked reminder of how Apple is not able to dominate digital video to the same extent that it has digital music.
NBC will now distribute its own downloads NBC Direct, which works only with Windows machines. Way to give Mac users the double finger, NBC.
Mac users will just have to wait for Hulu (NBC’s joint video venture with Fox) to publicly launch and settle for streams that disappear after five weeks, or go visit a Hulu affiliate like AOL, MSN, or MySpace.
I am not so sure we’ve seen the end of this drama. Who thinks NBC will bring its toys back to iTunes within a year?
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