Apple TV Business Generated $1 Billion in 2013, Cook Says 'Difficult to Call It a Hobby'

During Apple's annual stockholders meeting in Cupertino today, Apple CEO Tim Cook revealed that Apple sold more than $1 billion worth of its Apple TV set-top box in 2013, putting sales at close to 10 million units for the year.

This is a roughly double the 5 million it sold in fiscal 2012, which was double its Apple TV sales in 2011. Cook has traditionally called the Apple TV a "hobby", but said today that "it's a little more difficult to call it a hobby these days". Horace Dediu created a chart showing the impressive growth of Apple TV sales over the past several years, making it the fastest growing device in Apple's hardware lineup.

apple_tv_2012_interface
It has been repeatedly rumored that Apple is working on an improved set-top box and also a full-fledged television set. A new set-top box is expected to be introduced in the next couple of months, though it's unclear when the device itself would go on sale. A recent report said Apple would be introducing an SDK for Apple TV application development with an accompanying App Store launching to the public later in 2014.

Apple also launched a sale on the Apple TV at the company's online and retail outlets in the U.S., giving out a $25 iTunes Gift Card with purchase of the $99 device -- an unusual move for the company which only rarely offers sales on its devices.

Update 11:21AM: Re/code's Peter Kafka says the $1 billion number includes content sales on the Apple TV box, including movie rentals and TV show purchases.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Rumored to Use Same Rear Chassis as iPhone 16

Friday July 19, 2024 7:16 am PDT by
Apple will adopt the same rear chassis manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 that it is using for the upcoming standard iPhone 16, claims a new rumor coming out of China. According to the Weibo-based leaker "Fixed Focus Digital," the backplate manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 is "exactly the same" as the standard model in Apple's upcoming iPhone 16 lineup, which is expected to...
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Just Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Monday July 15, 2024 4:44 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
bsod

Crowdstrike Says Global IT Outage Impacting Windows PCs, But Mac and Linux Hosts Not Affected

Friday July 19, 2024 3:12 am PDT by
A widespread system failure is currently affecting numerous Windows devices globally, causing critical boot failures across various industries, including banks, rail networks, airlines, retailers, broadcasters, healthcare, and many more sectors. The issue, manifesting as a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD), is preventing computers from starting up properly and forcing them into continuous recovery...
iphone 14 lineup

Cellebrite Unable to Unlock iPhones on iOS 17.4 or Later, Leak Reveals

Thursday July 18, 2024 4:18 am PDT by
Israel-based mobile forensics company Cellebrite is unable to unlock iPhones running iOS 17.4 or later, according to leaked documents verified by 404 Media. The documents provide a rare glimpse into the capabilities of the company's mobile forensics tools and highlight the ongoing security improvements in Apple's latest devices. The leaked "Cellebrite iOS Support Matrix" obtained by 404 Media...
Apple Watch Series 9

2024 Apple Watch Lineup: Key Changes We're Expecting

Tuesday July 16, 2024 7:59 am PDT by
Apple is seemingly planning a rework of the Apple Watch lineup for 2024, according to a range of reports from over the past year. Here's everything we know so far. Apple is expected to continue to offer three different Apple Watch models in five casing sizes, but the various display sizes will allegedly grow by up to 12% and the casings will get taller. Based on all of the latest rumors,...
tinypod apple watch

TinyPod Turns Your Apple Watch Into an iPod

Wednesday July 17, 2024 3:18 pm PDT by
If you have an old Apple Watch and you're not sure what to do with it, a new product called TinyPod might be the answer. Priced at $79, the TinyPod is a silicone case with a built-in scroll wheel that houses the Apple Watch chassis. When an Apple Watch is placed inside the TinyPod, the click wheel on the case is able to be used to scroll through the Apple Watch interface. The feature works...

Top Rated Comments

addictive Avatar
136 months ago
Something is coming soon

Would the CEO talk on the Apple TV and talk it up (a $1 billion business on it own) if it wasn't leading somewhere soon?

Most of us will be disappointed in whatever Apple releases as the next version because many Macrumours fans believe it to be a magic box full of potential. However, Apples hands are tied due to content restrictions and cable companies.

I'd like to see the Apple TV have a 32GB SSD and a router combined - I'd like it to be able to run iOS games and a UI overhaul. At WWDC I'd like the company to open up the Apple TV to developers. I can't think it there would be huge amounts of apps worth downloading like on the iPhone and iPad but I do think some developers could make some extraordinary apps.

The WWE channel is very much a sign of things to come in the future.

Clearly "content is king" remains the mantra for all of broadcasting.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
clcnyc Avatar
136 months ago
Omg

Enough already!!! Just release it!! I'm tired of getting c*ck-teased with these headlines, only to find it being another speculation or quote from an analyst!
I know...first world problems. :rolleyes:
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bpeeps Avatar
136 months ago
I am pretty much just dying for a real Apple TV at this point. I need somebody to slay Time Comcast.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
brianvictor7 Avatar
136 months ago
I use my AppleTV almost as much as my iMac! Love it! Can't wait to see what is coming!
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gnasher729 Avatar
136 months ago
Sounds like BS. As I understand, the problem is with passing data from Level 3 to Comcast. It's not like AppleTV boxes are connected directly to Level 3 network.

You must sooooo hate it when someone says something positive about Apple.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
tknelson Avatar
136 months ago
Do you honestly think anyone on Wall Street is going to be impressed with that $1 billion business? C'mon. That would move Apple's overall needle about .01%. As soon as they announced that lackluster figure, Apple share price immediately went limp. I doubt even a $10 billion business would move Apple's share price up appreciably. We not talking about an unlimited growth potential company like Google. Every venture that Apple will ever do in the future has already been priced into the stock. I'm not going to buy an AppleTV until it has approved PLEX support although I might consider it if it plays off-the-shelf iOS games. So far, everything Apple does is only succeeding in driving the share price down further. And things never go well for Apple stock when Tim Cook starts with his "Apple will soon yada yada..." speech. :mad:

Why on earth do people say such moronic things?

$1 Billion is 0.01% of 10 TRILLION dollars. With annual revenues at around 150 Billion, you are off by almost two orders of magnitude.

… and when you say $10 Billion would also be tiny, that's not so much less than iPad revenues in 2012. Are you saying the iPad hasn't contributed to the share price?

Stocks are down today: this news has nothing to do with the share price today.

Oh yeah… and the Easter Bunny isn't real.

Anything else I can help you get a clue about?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)