AfterDawn: News

Disney to start online film service

Disney is planning to start selling movies over the internet via CinemaNow - including new films on the day of release. Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Disney's home video arm, is to make the films available on a download-to-own basis.

This move will give downloaders the ability to purchase films, new and old, for viewing on personal computers and portable devices. Films downloaded using this new service will, however be copy-protected using some form of Digital Rights Management (DRM).



Disney's service, scheduled to begin on 6th June, follows a similar move by five of its' Hollywood rivals, who launched similar services back in April. Universal Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Warner Bros., Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Paramount Pictures collectively created a download-to-own movie service via Movielink.

Up until April of this year, Hollywoods' major studios had been reluctant to distribute their films on the internet, as they feared that it would encourage illegal copying of their films and harm revenue from box office and video rental sales. But now, it appears they are ready to cash in on the lucrative online market.

Source:
BBC News

Written by: Ben Reid @ 4 Jun 2006 10:27

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• 7 comments

• davidl1l

  hey do they have a homepage that you can go on...to see these movies...

  4.6.2006 12:23 #1

• Mik3h

  Wasn't this posted a while back that they were going to start an online service..?
  
  -Mike

  4.6.2006 12:44 #2

• Run4two

  Or how about those disposable DVDs that oxidize after 48-72 hrs later. Disney is full of brilliant ideas (not!!!) Walt would be (and maybe) spinning in his grave. But, please, buy, buy, buy,Disney. My daughter is a shareholder (only 1 share :)

  4.6.2006 17:55 #3

• gogochar

  That is just pathetic!

  5.6.2006 06:36 #4

• halfhere

  this kinda baffles my mind, but isn't the whole hollywood anti-piracy thing supposed to be stopping internet downloads and such. Even those this is the "legalized" way of doing it, it is just opening a gateway to a multitude of conflicts just waiting to happen. I wonder if this way or the movielink is cheaper than netflix and blockbusters online service?

  6.6.2006 10:19 #5

• daemonzx6

  Okay, maybe its just me, but I don't see how anyone would buy a movie that they can only play on their computer. Movies look much better and can be much bigger on a television. And I've just about had it with this DRM bullshit, its everywhere you look these days.
  
  Protect the DVDs so they can't put them on their computers, and protect the movies they download to their computer so that they can't put them on DVDs. It's a viscious cycle.
  
  Although, you could always just avoid legal downloads entirely, the same stuff is available illegally, DRM free, and probably of higher quality as well.
  
  Or, if you think the copyright owner deserves the money, then just get off your ass, go to the store, and buy the music or movie. Not a single disc-based copy protection in use today hasn't been cracked already, so you'll pretty much be free to do whatever you want with it.
  
  NEVER SUCCUMB TO DRM

  6.6.2006 12:31 #6

• moviegram

  I just checked the link to legally buy these downloads at http://movielink.com/ and I am baffled. I do wonder why anyone would buy a movie download at that price ($19.99) especially if it is just for the computer when you can have the dvd in hand. It is the same price for buying the new release in the stores and they play on my computers (in the kids rooms) and in the dvd players. Why should they get the same money for a download as it costs for the dvd? The only way this work ever interest me is if you could get titles you cannot find in a store such as a movie in Disney's famous vault; even then I would have to want it pretty bad.

  11.6.2006 22:00 #7