CBS says Apple TV talks didn’t go anywhere

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Apple TV might get exclusive TV shows.
Apple oddly hasn't reached out in a while.
Photo: Apple/YouTube

CBS CEO Les Moonves had plenty to say about the Apple TV last year, but this year for some reason he said that CBS hasn’t been talking with Apple very much at all. Apparently the two companies used to talk pretty frequently about bringing CBS to Apple TV’s rumored streaming television service, but negotiations haven’t gotten anywhere yet.

“We had conversations awhile back, and we haven’t had recent conversations with them,” Moonves said to CNNMoney.

Last year Moonves seemed far more enthusiastic about the direction Apple was headed with CBS involved, stating that “Apple TV is trying to change the universe a little bit” in May.

It’s unclear why talks between the two companies have stopped for now. Perhaps Moonves is very cleverly trying to hint that talks have stopped simply because negotiations are finished, but more likely Apple is probably focusing on something else at the moment.

“Apple is having conversations with everyone about doing their own streaming services,” he said last year, confirming that Apple is (or was) actively trying to round up the networks for a new kind of television package. He also told CNNMoney that he still doesn’t know for sure whether Apple will be ready to launch the new Apple TV service this year or not.

Moonves did indicate though that CBS would be willing to join the Apple TV service lineup if both companies were able to agree on the financial side of things. But since the two have been silent lately, it looks like it’ll take a little while longer for that to happen.

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