Apple Could Drop iTunes TV Prices To $US1 Per Episode

This sounds like a great plan, but is it true? The FT seems to think so, claiming that the changes will hit the iTunes store at the end of April, to coincide with the launch of the iPad.

Apple’s current pricing scheme puts most SD TV content at $US2 an episode, with HD content coming at a $US1 premium. The new plan would likely just move the pricing levels down by a dollar and be done with it. So far, so simple.

But the FT doesn’t stop there: They also claim that Apple is still actively pursuing a $US30 “best of TV” subscription service, which would roll selected content into a bundle, for which users would pay a monthly fee, and that Apple is being careful to avoid linking the Apple TV to discussions about either proposal, because the prospect of people watching downloaded TV on their actual televisions is apparently terrifying to content providers, for some reason. Ha, could Apple care any less about that box?

So, how would this actually go down? I’d wager that a limited first wave of $US1 shows will serve as a sort of pilot program. Once, or if, these shows make up their price decrease with larger download volume, it’ll be much easier to convince the rest of the content providers to go along with the new scheme. Got a better theory? Throw it in the comments. [Financial Times]