Apple is reportedly working on a connected television product that will stream content from the cloud and potentially incorporate new voice-control system Siri, a report has claimed.

Jeff Robbin, the software engineer who helped create the iPod and built iTunes, is leading development of the Apple TV set, according to Bloomberg News, which cites "three people with knowledge of the project".

His apparent involvement is being viewed as a sign of Apple's commitment to breaking into the living room after it revolutionised mobile consumer electronics products.

Apple has long been rumored to make a strong move into TV, with many commentators viewing this as the "missing leg" on its chair after phones, MP3 players and computers.

But speculation has reached new heights after Steve Job's official biographer Walter Isaacson revealed that the Apple co-founder said before his death on October 5 that he had "finally cracked" how to build an integrated TV device.

In Steve Jobs, published on Monday, Isaacson wrote that Jobs had told him the Apple TV set "would be seamlessly synced with all of your devices and with iCloud," adding: "It will have the simplest user interface you could imagine. I finally cracked it."

Until now, Apple's television products have been limited to Apple TV, the cut-price gadget that enables users to stream content from iTunes, YouTube and other sources on their TVs.

Despite the company selling 1m units of Apple TV in three months after its relaunch last year, Jobs and Apple chief executive Tim Cook have previously described the service as just a "hobby" compared to the firm's mobile and computing arms.

But Gene Munster, an analyst with Piper Jaffray Co, claims that Apple now has a prototype TV in the works that could go on sale by 2013.

Muster is basing his information on meetings with contacts close to Apple's suppliers in Asia, along with the fact that Apple has been investing in new manufacturing facilities and securing supplies of LCD displays.

Bloomberg says that Apple will use its new web-storage service iCloud to boost the TV product, and could even include the Siri voice command technology included in the iPhone 4S.

Siri could help users search for videos and other content, while iCloud would allow them to store their pictures and music in the cloud instead of using their own hard drives, says Bloomberg.

Shares in Apple rose 3.3% to $405.77 at the close of trading on the New York stock exchange yesterday, and have climbed 26% this year.

Simon Woodward, the chief at digital TV specialist ANT, said that Apple's "magic touch" has the potential to revolutionise the connected TV market, as it has done for smartphones and tablets.

"While the industry has been talking about connected TV for some time, for many consumers the true benefits are yet to be realized, as a result of poor education from retailers or manufacturers making the install and other aspects of the experience overly complex," he said.

"While new technology opens doors when it comes to exploring and discovering new content, at the heart of TV viewing is still the desire to turn on, tune in, sit back and relax.

"If Apple really does plan to enter the market, it is likely to be welcomed by the consumers - and the rest of the market may need to sit up and take notice.

"With more players beginning to stake a claim in this explosive industry, the bar is set for higher standards to deliver the rich, seamless viewing experience that consumers expect when they sit down to watch TV."

By: DocMemory
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