Netflix shares fall on talk of Apple-Comcast deal

Netflix shares fell $31.49 or 7.78 percent to $374.67. The drop came a day after a story that first appeared in the online edition of The Wall Street Journal said Comcast and Apple were in talks about teaming up for a new TV product that stores programming in the cloud and would replace clunky cable boxes in people's homes.

Apple and Comcast have declined to comment on the report but a source familiar with the matter told Reuters the discussions were at an early stage and there are a lot of hurdles to be crossed before any agreement is reached.

(Also see: Apple developing a set-top box, in talks with Comcast for streaming service: Report)

Apple also wants the TV service's Internet traffic to be separate from public Internet traffic and would be looking for special treatment from Comcast's cable pipe to give customers a better experience, the newspaper said.

Arris Group Inc, a company that makes set-top boxes for the cable industry and paid Google $2.35 billion for Motorola's cable box unit last April, also saw its shares fall 6 percent on fears that an Apple-Comcast partnership could hurt sales of traditional set-top boxes.

© Thomson Reuters 2014