NBC Says Goodbye to iTunes

If you watch your NBC shows by downloading them from iTunes, you’ll be out of luck in a few weeks…

NBC Universal has told Apple Inc. that it will not be renewing its iTunes contract that expires in December. So, iTunes has decided it will stop selling NBCU shows at the onset of the fall season.

So what happened here? As with most things, it’s all about the money. NBC wanted to offer packages of bundled programs at different prices, while Apple wanted to stay at its set $.99 and $1.99 price points.

NBCU programming accounts for 40 percent of iTunes video downloads.

To counteract losing iTunes as a place for its programming, NBC is now offering its shows through Amazon.com’s Unbox service. NBC shows will no doubt also be available through the upcoming NBC/FOX Internet service, Hulu.