Does the Future of Television Belong to the Device or the App?

The past and future of the TV cable box is at the center of a big war-of-words at the Federal Communications Commission. The fight has gotten scant press attention, but it's a subject that's fueling strong commentary from the likes of tech giants Google and Amazon and even dividing Hollywood. The Motion Picture Association of America is even going so far as to suggest that a proposal to revolutionize the TV device market would violate both the First and Fifth Amendments to the US Constitution. The Writers Guild disagrees.

Upon direction from Congress, the FCC is looking at new standards for "downloadable security" on set-top boxes. That might sound dry until one realizes that it has something to do with cable boxes currently costing the average household $231 a year, new cheaper devices such as Roku or Amazon's FireTV entering the market, and the fact that Netflix, HBO, CBS and other programmers are delivering "over the top" services. Who controls how television will be presented? Do consumers wants lots of apps to choose from? Or do they want more nimble devices? These are some of the big questions being considered by media regulators.