Last week we brought you news that Apple might be unveiling a new Apple TV operating system during the keynote at WWDC 2012 next week. The new OS would replace the version of iOS currently running on the Apple TV, and would be the operating system that powered the much-rumored iTV.
While the original rumor was light on details concerning the capabilities of the new operating system, information that surfaced just a little while ago may provide one very major detail. According to BGR, Apple will release a software development kit (SDK) alongside the new Apple TV OS next week. If this is true, then third-party developers will be able to develop apps for the Apple TV (and, presumably, the iTV). In other words, the App Store could, at long last, be coming to the Apple TV.
When the second generation Apple TV launched in 2010, the fact that it did not feature the App Store raised a lot of eyebrows. While the device certainly packed an impressive feature set and proved quite popular, virtually everyone agreed that what it really needed was apps. In fact, rumors about the App Store coming with various iOS updates have sprung up periodically over the last two years. When the time came for the third generation Apple TV to launch earlier this year (alongside the new third-generation iPad), many expected that Apple would finally announce apps for the Apple TV. Again, it didn’t happen.
Now, though, it looks like Apple TV users may finally be getting their wish: the Apple TV may finally be getting access to the App Store. What’s more, if Apple really does have their own HDTV in the works, then it will be getting the App Store as well. While many (myself included) have wondered whether Apple could truly revolutionize the TV market in the same way they did the MP3 player, smartphone, and tablet markets, the App Store would go a long way toward making that happen.
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