YouView 'on track for summer launch' And when challenged about why TV audiences needed this internet-connected set-top box when most new television sets come with an in-built internet connection and app store, Harding argued YouView would transform the interface of web-connected TV. As Steve Jobs [Apple's late co-founder and former chief executive] said and proved- it's all about having the best interface. YouView will help people easily navigate the huge amount of additional content people can now access on their TV screens with an internet connection. In March 2011, frustrated shareholders brought in Lord Sugar to "cure or kill" the project. However, only last month Lord Sugar is believed to have said the box Last year, when YouView was expected to launch again, media analysts voiced their concern that the box, which Mark Thompson, the BBC's Director General, has called the next chapter of its TV development, could become increasingly obsolete if it failed to launch until 2012. Ian Maude, head of Internet at Enders Analysis, said at the time: "The later YouView leaves it to launch, the market opportunity will shrink, with consumer demand being soaked up by other services and web TV applications. If they can't get it out before the Olympics, which is looking less and less likely, I wouldn't bother. It's a badly kept secret that the team are considerably behind schedule. Dan Cryan, head of broadband at Screen Digest, added: "With more and more TV catch up services, such as the iPlayer, coming to the living room TV set using the browser, YouView risks becoming irrelevant." However, sources close to Lord Sugar revealed to The Telegraph last month that he did not think the box would be ready until the end of 2012. Boxes are expected to retail for around £200 and people can also acquire YouView as part of bundle offering when signing up for broadband with TalkTalk or BT. However the box works regardless of Internet provider. Consumers will need access to a digital TV signal and a broadband connection for the box to work. Both Sky and Virgin Media lodged complaints with Ofcom in 2010 to stop YouView going ahead on anti-competitive grounds. The BBC Trust granted its approval for it to go ahead in 2010. The whole project is expected to cost £115 million over a period of four years beginning in April 2010, with each partner spending a total of approximately £16.4 million on the endeavour. However all the shareholders were expected to cover many of the costs, such as technical development and marketing, in the first two years, with the BBC's spend expected to have reached six million pounds by the end of April 2011, with no product to show for it. According to documents filed at Companies House, YouView spent more than £20m in its first nine months to April last year. However, well-placed sources said that the spend so far is now more than £100m.