Access Granted: Apple TV Plans Progress

While a much-discussed groundbreaking television set from Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) is still in unforeseeable view, the company has been taking small steps in the space over the last few months. In the latest advancement, it has been granted a patent for a future version of an Apple TV set-top box that will be able to access additional information about a television show or movie a user is watching and offer additional contextual information on it simultaneous with the broadcast.

The patent describes a way to send this additional context-base information to a paired iPad or iPhone working in sync with the set-top box as well as with the content coming from the cable or satellite provider, according to Patently Apple. This may include basic information about the media content, such as details about the work, author, actors, as well as data like a web address where additional information can be obtained. The Apple TV box will be able to send the contextual messages to the receiving device with the idea of enhancing the user’s experience by making it more interactive.

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This method will also be applicable in a setting where the same media content is being presented to multiple users, and they receive their contextual information on separate receiving devices, thus creating varied personalized experiences.

There has been much speculation around the company’s supposed television plans since Walter Isaacson wrote in his biography of Steve Jobs that the Apple co-founder was sure he had “cracked” the market and was keen on creating a path-breaking integrated television set that syncs seamlessly with all of the user’s devices and with iCloud.

Apple has publicly not spoken of any such plans, though several analysts and experts are sure it’s only a matter of time before the company makes its entry into the space.

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