Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) is reportedly gearing up to launch a video subscription service, and while the details are still murky, our own Staci Kramer at paidContent.org is reporting that negotiations between Apple and the TV networks are in advanced stages and a service could launch by next year.
CBS (NYSE: CBS) and Disney (NYSE: DIS) (in which Apple’s Steve Jobs is a major shareholder) are considered the most interested parties, and the service would likely be available through iTunes, which already sells movies and TV shows today, but does not offer them for a monthly subscription. It could also run on multiple platforms, including Apple’s iPhones, iPods, or its Apple TV device. But today, the Financial Times is taking the speculation one step further and reporting that Apple could offer the TV subscription on the yet-to-be-confirmed tablet computer, which it reports is “widely expected to launch imminently.”
Kathryn Huberty, a Morgan Stanley analyst: “The driver behind it [the tablet] will be content.” As for the timing, FT.com claims that Apple is preparing an announcement next month, at which time a launch could occur. Wall Street analysts also expect mass production of an Apple tablet to begin as early as February.
For the record, Apple has denied that it is actually working on a Tablet. The details of such a device if it actually exists are entirely vague and completely based on rumors. Other tablet-like computers have launched in the marketplace, and magazine publishers, like Time (NYSE: TWX) and Condé Nast, have created prototype digital editions for them.

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