The chief executive officer of Foxconn Technology Group, the world's largest contract manufacturer of electronics, has reportedly confirmed that his company had begun preparations to manufacture Apple's highly-anticipated TV-set.

Terry Gou, the head of Foxconn, said the company is making preparations for iTV, Apple's rumored upcoming high-definition television, although development or manufacturing has yet to begin, reports China Daily. Apple's TV-set reportedly features an aluminum construction, Siri, and FaceTime video calling.

Foxconn's recent LCD joint-venture factory with Sharp in Japan is one of the preparations made for the new device, Mr. Gou reportedly said.

Nobody knows what exactly is Apple TV-set and how competitive it is in the light of emerging smart TVs with stereo-3D support and other technologies. In fact, it is unknown whether the company even plans to release it this year. But like a lot of Apple's products, it may become a major success for the company and will transform the whole market of TV-sets. But that is not cast on stone as TV-makers are also not standing still and will compete against Apple vigorously. One thing that Apple should count on is a unique set of capabilities that will be hard to copy in a short period of time.

One of the main features of Apple's television set is projected to be an ability to quickly search for content from numerous sources, including Apple's own iTunes. Given the fact that the user experience should be integrated, this feature alone presents a number of challenges. In order to provide unique capabilities and simplicity, Apple TV will likely integrate iCloud as Siri along with motion sensing support for content sharing and control purposes. In a bid to be able to control the TV using iPhone, iPad or iPod, the TV will be compatible with Apple's AirPlay technology.

Apple traditionally remains tight-lipped about its future television set, nobody knows whether it will receive content using radio broadcast, cable or the Internet. Actual peculiarities and capabilities of Apple TV will be determined after the company negotiates with media partners.

It remains to be seen whether the Apple TV device will also support high-definition gaming as presently Apple's ecosystem clearly has a weak spot due to absence of high-quality games on Macs and lack of a game console in Apple's lineup.

The Apple TV project has been discussed by market observers for several years already, this year Apple's former chief executive officer Steve Jobs confirmed his biographer Walter Isaacson that the work on TV was underway as well as that the Apple TV would have a simple user interface and would wirelessly synchronize content across all Apple devices.

Tags: Apple, TV, Apple TV, HDTV