The single biggest supplier of video to iTunes, NBC Universal has decided not to renew its contract with Apple, reports the NY Times. The decision likely stems from frustration over Apple’s refusal to allow flexible pricing or product bundling.
There are two ways to look at this, of course. The first is there are other players on the market now, like Amazon Unbox, that would be much more willing to flex with NBCU’s demands. There’s also NBCU-News Corp’s upcoming Hulu.com video site, which may incorporate paid downloads. So NBCU has options, and besides, paid video downloading is still in its early years. (And as Safran mentions in comments, you should be able to set pricing for your own products.) The other side of the coin is iTunes dominates the paid video download business right now. NBCU was one of iTunes’ earlier adopters, and the network even trumpeted the fact that the popularity of The Office on iTunes helped boost the show’s ratings. If that’s true, a move like this while NBC is trying to rebuild the network’s programming may not resonate well with the marketing folks.
Regardless, as the NY Times points out, NBCU’s decision to bail may motivate other media companies to drive a harder bargain — or leave iTunes altogether. Reactions?
