Links for Tuesday December 22^nd, 2009

• Will Apple and Microsoft join together to fight Google?: In certain areas, Google has no credible competitors. So, while I hope that Apple doesn't start parterning up with Microsoft, but I can actually see it happening.

• Apple May Be On The Verge Of Kneecapping The Cable Industry. Finally.: Good overview of this situation from TechCrunch:

  "Of course, Apple already offers a ton of television content over iTunes, but there are a few big problems. First and foremost, you have to buy all of this content. I don’t know about you, but I have no desire to buy 99% of the television shows I watch. I would much rather pay a fraction of the purchase cost to “rent” them, as it were, for a time being. iTunes currently has no such option — it’s all or nothing.

  And buying this content has another very real downside: You need enough storage space to keep it all."

• CBS, Disney Examine Apple's TV-Subscription Service: The Wall Street Journal on Apple's potential new TV streaming service:

  "An initial version of the proposal had envisioned selling access to advertising-free shows from a bundle of top cable and broadcast networks—the 'best of television'—with a consumer price tag of $30 a month, according to people familiar with the talks."

  No ads? Sign me up.

• James Cameron's Avatar in five panels: It's funny because it's true.