Ahead of every Apple press conference for the past two years there have been strong rumours of a new Apple TV, and every time they've proved to be false. Now, more than three years after Apple last gave the Apple TV a significant refresh, it appears the company has radical new plans for the media streamer.

View latest Apple Music discount codes

The New York Times appears to have received a carefully timed tip-off that the new Apple TV - to be unveiled at Apple's press conference on Wednesday - will focus primarily on games. The report suggests the device will come with a new remote that will double as a Wii-like games controller, with the Apple TV supporting downloadable games and apps for the first time.

The current Apple TV is very much focused on media streaming, with Apple curating the selection of apps that are on offer to owners. Netflix, YouTube and Sky Now are among the apps available for the Apple TV, but major names such as the BBC iPlayer are absent, relying on users to beam content to their Apple TV from another iOS device. There are currently no games whatsoever for the Apple TV.

The proposed device sounds very similar in scope to the Amazon Fire TV , which comes with an optional games controller for playing titles such as the pocket edition of Minecraft and Angry Birds, as well as offering media streaming. Amazon's device is priced at £79, while the New York Times reports that the new Apple TV will cost around $150 (£100).

All will (or won't) be revealed at Wednesday's press conference in San Francisco, when Apple is also expected to unveil new iPhones, iPads and a possible refresh of the Mac line-up.