MacUser has this update on the breakdown between Apple and NBC. Apple is continuing to play, heavily, the “NBC wants to jack up prices” card:

“We are disappointed to see NBC leave iTunes because we would not agree to their dramatic price increase,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s vice president of iTunes. “We hope they will change their minds and offer their TV shows to the tens of millions of iTunes customers.”

The network does its best to counter this lucid explanation, but doesn’t do a very good job of it

NBC denied that it had asked for twice as much money. In his statement Cory Shields, EVP Communications at NBC, said that the talks with Apple centred on NBC’s demand for more flexible pricing “in ways that could make our content even more attractive for consumers”.

“It is clear that Apple’s retail pricing strategy for its iTunes service is designed to drive sales of Apple devices, at the expense of those who create the content that make these devices worth buying,” he said.

You have to admire a flack who describes raising prices as making content “even more attractive for consumers.” Apple is surely exaggerating or distorting NBC’s concerns, which are said also to include piracy. But it’s also apparent the company and others are chafing under Steve Job’s strictures. That, as I argue below, there are some pretty good reasons for the intransigence, doesn’t seem to matter. Indeed, again, it’s not clear that letting the network jack up prices and try to screw over their customers will affect Apple negatively at all. The computer company will presumably continue to get a percentage of each sale (higher prices translating into higher income); Apple’s iPod will continue to be able to play any content, including illegally downloaded video, the prevalence of which will undoubtedly increase as prices in official channels—and consumer cynicism—go up.