Apple is signing long-term deals for more bandwidth as the company builds up its Internet infrastructure, the Wall Street Journal reports. The infrastructure will be “capable of delivering large amounts of content to customers.” Though the WSJ points out Apple could need more bandwidth for existing services such as iCloud, iTunes, and the App Store, the report also notes the infrastructure could handle more traffic if Apple “decides to move deeper into television.” Bill Norton, chief strategy officer for International Internet Exchange, estimates Apple now has the bandwidth to move hundreds of gigabits of data per second.
“That’s the starting point for a very, very big network,” he said. It’s possible that Apple is expecting to radically increase the number of Apple TV devices in the marketplace, begin to offer 4K-quality streams, or both.
Apple recently added a new Apple TV page to its online store, fueling speculation that a major update to its “hobby” device will be happening soon. iLounge has reported that games will be a larger part of Apple TV after an update.
