Apple could begin selling US television shows for about a buck, half of its charge on its iTunes digital media store, when the computer maker’s iPad tablet computer hits the stores, according to a "Financial Times" report (http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/14856f08-168e-11df-bf44-00144feab49a.html?ncli...).

The test, expected to coincide with the April consumer debut of the iPad, will offer some shows at the lower price as a way to test whether reducing the cost of video programming will ignite sales, "people familiar with the discussions" told the FT.

The WiFi version of the iPad is due to go on sale at the end of March. The 3G versions will debut about a month later, according to Apple.

So how many any of the US free-to-air and pay-television networks have agreed to the lower pricing? That's unclear. The FT says some media executives said they haven't been approached about such deal.