Apple's Couch-Potato Conundrum

Apple (AAPL Quote) is taking a tentative step into customers' living rooms. But will customers follow?

The company's unveiling on Wednesday of a collection of products and services seems more geared to the consumer lying on a couch than the one sitting at a desk. The new offerings include a video-playing iPod, a remote control, a software program that allows users to flip easily at a distance between movies and music stored on their computer -- and the ultimate couch-potato pleaser, episodes of popular TV shows.

But this isn't yet a full digital-age entertainment system. And for all the excitement about being able to watch Desperate Housewives on a computer or an iPod, some analysts wonder how many users really want to do that. ...