In a recent interview with Rock Center’s, Brian Williams, Cook gave Apple fans everywhere something to argue and debate over for months to come. “When I go into my living room and turn on the TV, I feel like I have gone backwards in time by 20 to 30 years,” Cook told Williams. “It’s an area of intense interest. I can’t say more than that.” Whether this statement has any real weight is what is to be debated. It wasn’t long ago that Apple publically deemed development of TV “a hobby”, but now it seems that it has been upgraded to a state of “intense interest”.

It has been debated whether this new device will be a full-fledged television, or just an upgraded version of their current Apple TV product. According to Maynard Um of Wells Fargo Securities in a statement provided to AppleInsider, he believes that an actual television would be much more likely for Apple to produce than a set-top box. He said he believes Apple would “relish” the opportunity to place the company’s logo as “the centerpiece of the living room.” Um is not the only analyst to predict the production of an Apple branded television set, Peter Misek from Jeffries & Co. believed back in March that components for this television set were “starting to move in small quantities”. According to his new research, he now believes “…the iTV is in full production.” This is supported by fellow Jeffries & Co. analyst James Kinser who went on to say, “Our discussions with industry contacts suggest that at least one major North American MSO [multiple systems operator, which includes companies such as Time Warner that own many cable systems] is working to estimate how much additional capacity may be needed for a new Apple device on their broadband data network.” This would certainly conclude that Apple has either started production of a TV, or has slated to start production in the very near future.

The overall smart TV market was worth $86 billion in 2010 and is expected to reach $265 billion by the end of 2016 at a CAGR of 17%, it seems to be a perfect opportunity for Apple to take over a large share of yet another segment of the modern household. According to www.marketsandmarkets.com, a leading market research website, smart TV’s (in terms of unit shipments) were valued at 43.6 million units in 2010 and reached around 64 million by the end of 2011 at an annual growth of 47%. By 2016, smart TV unit shipment is expected to reach 153.2 million units at a CAGR of 19%. In such a rapidly growing market, it isn’t farfetched that we could see some form of an Apple TV hitting the shelves in 2013.

Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray has come to a similar, more specific conclusion. He believes Apple will launch a television set that will release coinciding with the 2013 holiday shopping season. He believes the product will be between 42 and 55 inches in size, and come with a price tag between $1,500 for the former and $2,000 for the latter. “”We expect the beauty of the design to be a feature, but the most important feature will be the ability to use the TV as the main interface for the living room across multiple devices,” Munster wrote. “We believe the TV will include Siri and FaceTime. The biggest item unlikely to come with the TV will be unbundled channels.” The introduction of a TV from Apple could be one of the largest releases Apple has had to date. By adding a television into their already encompassing product line could prove to be the knockout punch to many smaller technology companies that have been struggling in this down-turned economy.

Whether we see Apple release a full television set, or just a set-top box that is compatible with your current TV is certainly up for debate. But there is strong evidence; supported by Tim Cook himself, that Apple will be entering the television market in the next year or so.

By Troy Hoffman