AppleTV is a versatile device that works in several different modes. It has direct Internet access through YouTube. It can play media files that are loaded onto it. And it can play media files provided to it through an iTunes “server” application running on a host computer. It is these later modes that are of the most interest to parents looking for a “controlled” solution for their children.

The first thing to mention is that the AppleTV has very good parental controls built in. With these control parents can do a range of locks including removing all access to YouTube and Internet direct content, removing the ability to access the iTunes Store to obtain new, external material and can control the ratings of movies and television shows that will be allowed even when access to them is permitted. So right away there are a range of options that make the AppleTV safe and simple for parents to provide.

The true versatility of the AppleTV for youngsters comes from its “one level separation” from being directly connected to the Internet. Because there is a complete separation between the AppleTV and content on the Internet it is far easier and more secure for parental supervision to be enforced.

The AppleTV gets its content from an “iTunes Server” – that is a computer on your home network that is actively running iTunes and is paired with the AppleTV. Because iTunes is used to feed media to the AppleTV there is a level of direct control that does not readily exist in other systems. Here the iTunes can be set to subscribe only to trusted channels or not to have any subscriptions at all. iTunes can be set to allow nothing but audio and video files loaded onto it by the parents. This is an extremely simple and effective means of content control far beyond what is possible with a DVD player since any DVD can be put into the player but the AppleTV can allow only that content that is preapproved.

Content on iTunes can be purchased through the iTunes store, purchased elsewhere online or can be generated locally either as home movies or by using tools like Handbrake to convert purchased legacy media into AppleTV ready h.264 files. AppleTV’s native video format, h.264, makes for some extremely small video files at very good quality. Perfect for storing large collections of childrens’ shows.

If access to your entire media collection hosted on iTunes is still too wide of content access (perhaps you have some PG movies in there and want to limit accessibility to just a select few films or television shows) you can choose to lock iTunes so that only content that you explicitly load onto the AppleTV through iTunes sync mechanism will be available. This makes it simple to load a large amount of media and then to limit it on a very granular level for very exacting control.

No matter which method or group of methods that you choose to limit content access the AppleTV is truly an answered prayer for parents looking to provide content access in a safe and simple manner for their children. The ease with which it can be used and the level of security that it offers is really remarkable. And because the device requires no physical contact to operate it can be installed safely out of reach of young children who can operate all of its functionality using nothing more than its small, plastic remote. This will relieve much of the concern over putting an expensive electronic device into a young child’s room or den where accidents will often happen.

Unlike services which are purely Internet streaming in nature the AppleTV’s local caching makes their device also work even with unstable Internet connection or even in situations where there is no connection at all. This type of media device will operate surprisingly like a DVD jukebox when pre-cached with content. Children could have as much as 160GB of media sitting ready to go at any time for themselves or for watching with their friends without needing intervention from you.

The AppleTV really represents an opportunity to feel confident about having control of children’s content availability in an age of much uncertain access.

I have written these things and have been disputed again and again that television is so dominant and that the idea of getting videos on physical media is so core to our culture that it would be many years if not many decades before these things will change. But I believe that the end is already here. Driven, in part, by the industry division caused by the competing media formats which are too complex for the average consumer to differentiate between, partially because of the poor standards of HDTV and its inability to handle the de facto high definition standard of 1080p, partially because of intentionally misleading marketing and specifications on high definition display products but mostly because the time and technology are right.

There are several technology players who have stepped up to the plate recently to tackle the world of physical and traditional media. I have opined in the past that non-commercial services like YouTube, Google Video, Vimeo and RSS feed based downloadable content from shows like Rocketboom, Wandering West Michigan and others through software like FireANT or Democracy would be the disruptive factors deciding the fate of media. I still believe that they will remain major plays and, over time, will come to dominate the marketplace as people turn away from commercial production finding more niche content delivered in a more personal way to be more valuable. But before that can happen there is an intermediate phase, I believe, in which commercial content will be delivered through next-generation methods and this will remove the underpinnings of traditional media.

Enter Netflix and AppleTV. There are others, of course. And some that came earlier. Amazon Unbox covers much of the same ground. But Netflix and AppleTV look to be the most disruptive and visible of the players in this new content delivery space.

The first serious, large scale implementation of a network delivery system for digital video content came from Apple’s iTunes. iTunes and AppleTV together form a cache and store content delivery network with complex Digital Rights Management (DRM) allowing for a simply and traditionally styled interface to television like content delivered over the Internet. Because of its cache and store architecture iTunes is able to function with very high definition video even over slower and less reliable network connections. The iTunes licensing team has secured a large volume of current television shows and movies that can be purchased through iTunes and watched on a computer, on a media center or on the AppleTV. The system is straightforward for most consumers and works very well. And the quality of the content generally meets or exceeds the alternatives of broadcast HDTV or DVD. Additionally the iTunes system blends alternative content from RSS/Atom feeds seamlessly into the picture allowing The Jet Set Show or Channel Frederator programs to appear as any other “television” content. Even YouTube can be viewed through the system. For consumers used to the high costs of cable and the unavailability of broadcast signals iTunes and AppleTV is a high quality, low cost competitor to traditional television with the advantage of having no commercials and all content being available on demand.

Netflix has recently entered the arena with their own disruptive service. Netflix’s primary business is as a movie rental alternative whereby movie renters can sign up for a monthly rental service and have DVDs or, more recently, HD-DVD and BlueRay Discs, delivered to them by post. The cost is extremely low and the ease of use and vast selection makes it very easy to choose over traditional rental services. Over the past few years Netflix has become very popular especially with the serious cinema market.  The new service from Netflix is the ability to view movies over the Internet via a streaming video service.  This service is included with all of the normal movie rental pricing plans making it “free” for their current user base to test and try.  This service, for people with moderate quality Internet connections, provides instant access to a massive, and constantly growing, library of “on demand” movies, documentaries and television programs.  For only a tiny fraction of the normal cost of cable service one can subscribe to Netflix’s unlimited download service and get unlimited, commercial free on-demand content.  The system is new but massively disruptive.

What is truly amazing about these two systems and their competitive counterparts like Amazon Unboxed is that they are not competing with the content of current media but only competing with the content delivery system.  By switching from traditional television and movie rentals to these services one will, under the vast majority of circumstances, save money,  increase easy of use after initial learning curve, remove commercials, remove reliance on “schedules” or “hours of business”, reduce necessary planning, increase selection, increase quality and remove expensive and incompatible devices which are currently popular to “mimick” these types of services such as DVRs.

What we are seeing now is an adaptation allowing people to continue to use the content that they are used to while receiving it through modern methods.  These new distribution systems will, in all likelihood,  prove to be ideal conduits for new types of content that can be delivered just as easily as traditional content.  The end of traditional television is here.  No longer is television just a legacy technology delivering a unique form of commercial entertainment and content that was not yet available through modern means – now it is simply legacy.