A top television executive has revealed that he spurned the advances of Steve Jobs, who tried to bring him on board for the heavily-rumoured Apple iTV venture.
Les Moonves, who is CEO at CBS, says he was the recipient of a pitch from the late Apple visionary regarding his network's participation in a subscription-based service, but turned him down.
His reasoning? Moonves says he was worried about damaging the network's existing revenue streams through broadcast and cable television.
When Jobs, somewhat typically, challenged that assertion, Moonves cited his superior knowledge of the television industry.
He said: "I told Steve, 'You know more than me about 99 per cent of things but I know more about the television business.'"
Netflix is a 'friend'
Despite his concerns over Apple iTV, the network bigwig spoke positively about his company's on-demand deals with Netflix, Hulu and Amazon, during a speech at the UCLA Law School.
His comments suggest that Apple still has plenty of work to do to convince the television industry that its way is the right way.
The company has spearheaded a huge change of attitude within the music industry, and in Hollywood to some extent, with iTunes and the recent addition of iCloud.
However, will the notoriously stubborn TV executives, terrified by the prospect of 'cable cutting,' be as willing to listen when they are taking less of a piracy hit than their music or movie counterparts, with the cable business still strong?
If the great Steve Jobs and his legendary powers of persuasion couldn't do the trick, it appears that Tim Cook and his crew could have a tough job on their hands ensuring that, when it does arrive, the Apple iTV has enough content to make a splash.
