MacUser: Who actually buys these movies?

News, info, and opinion by Mac users, for Mac users.

September 18, 2006

Who actually buys these movies?

Authored by Scott Silverman at 10:38 AM

Category | Music » iTMS

Digg it | del.icio.us

200609181702 There seems to have been a lot of relief and excitement in the Mac community once the iTunes (Music) Store finally started sporting movie downloads. But now that it has arrived, I ask you this question: who actually buys these movies?

At $10, $13, or $15 bucks a pop for a 640 x 480 movie that can be watched on your 2.5 inch iPod screen or on your computer, it seems to me that much of the lust for this service is destroyed. I would say 95% of users do not have a convenient means to play their iTunes movies on a TV. Thus it seems the movie download service is more hype than anything else. Every person I’ve talked to, be it adult, student, child, or pet, has said they have no intention of buying any movies from the iTunes Store.

So while the store’s a nice concept, do you actually know of anyone who will/does use it? It seems to me that the store is just a small marketing step in preparation of more practical things to come.

Comments

I think you nailed it with your last sentence. Apple (and others) are jockeying for position for a movie download market that is yet to be defined. No one wants to let the opportunity slip by so they are all deploying product that is not yet ready for the market.

Posted by: John | September 18, 2006 03:12 PM

I suspect that Apple is again attempting to do what they did with TV shows. Start with what they could now, and then show the networks that it's a viable income stream that's going to help increaase, not decrease, their business.

When Apple launched TV shows not even a year ago, they had a handful of shows and networks involved. Today, they have 40 networks, over 200 shows, and have sold 45 million of them.

Another piece of the puzzle lies with the iTV announcement. As you say, watching movies on your computer or pod is one thing. Being able to shift them to your living room is quite another.

I predict that the other studios are watching this experiment VERY carefully. Let Disney rack up even some semi-impressive sales numbers, and the other studios will climb on board.

And yes, I bought one (just to see what it was like).

Posted by: Michael Long | September 18, 2006 03:45 PM

I have been asking myself (and everyone else) the same questions. I simply don't understand the appeal of digitally-distributed video, at least not until it can be done at a price and speed that each overcomes the tradeoffs of the other. The last mile (the wire to your house) is a much bigger problem than the last 10 feet (the wire, or not, from your computer to your TV). Until there are much more efficient codecs or a lot more bandwidth that is a lot more available, I just don't see a huge market for this stuff. And that's to say nothing of the price. Over the weekend, I was tempted to buy a download of Good Will Hunting, a nice movie I haven't seen in some time. As part of iTunes' "library titles", it costs $9.99. But on a whim I checked Amazon's price for the DVD of that movie. Guess what? $9.99! And that DVD, of course, includes the widescreeen presentation, much better picture and sound than Apple's download version, and extras like director's commentary.

No, for now, downloadable video really just seems like a hammer in search of a nail.

Posted by: Mark U. | September 18, 2006 03:56 PM

Hahaha LOL WTF

Posted by: skinnyninny | September 18, 2006 04:23 PM

I personally probably wouldn't buy any of these movies.... not only would it take too long to download, but it would be easier to go rent a movie for a couple of dollars, rip it with Handbrake, and then have a completely DRM-free versin of the movie.... who all agrees?

Posted by: Dillon K. | September 18, 2006 04:33 PM

Exactly!!!!! Why would anyone pay the same price as a DVD when you can buy he disc to watch at home and convert it with Handbrake for the iPod. Not that I do that

Posted by: James Silvani | September 18, 2006 04:53 PM

I'll buy movies as soon as they release the iTV just out of convenience..I don't buy movies often, but when the mood strikes me I'd like to do it from home. Plus, I live with 4 other roommates all with iTunes networked and so once we have iTV setup it'll be neat to be able to order a movie from any of the computers and view it in the living room.

Posted by: Dave | September 18, 2006 04:58 PM

Well I did buy a movie on the iTunes store. It looked nice on my 1280x1024 screen. Unlike the TV shows that are pretty grainy.

I hope that the Prices on the Movies will come down, because $9.99 for a movie struck me as kind of high. I would have been more happy with a $5.99 for older titles, and 7.99 for new title approach.

I agree that this is Apple's toe in the water for movies. You WILL be seeing more movies added. They might be more Disney/Miramax at first, but more will come. It started out slim for Music at first too.

Tasha

Posted by: Tasha | September 18, 2006 06:36 PM

I have and I will continue to buy content for traveling. Instead of carrying DVDs it's all on my HD... couldn't be sweeter! Front Row looks great on hotel TVs from Europe to South Africa and the East to the West coast...

I just hope more content is on the way...

What you guys don't get is that there are people who don't have the time to RIP and convert purchased DVDs.

This is a baby step and the future looks solid. Think about taking your iPod to your buddy's place with your video library and connecting it to his iTV...

Posted by: shaun Wolfson | September 18, 2006 06:55 PM

I can't see the appeal of buying a (relatively) low-res film to keep. If I'm on the road, or the kids are ratty, or if it's raining, I can imagine downloading a film as a rental, especially if it means I can get pretty much whatever I want (obviously this is far more appealing than going to peruse the less-than-stellar pulp selection at the local rental store). But if I want to buy it to keep it, I want at least DVD quality.

Posted by: Stuart Heath | September 18, 2006 11:10 PM

I did purchase one, just to test the waters, but I agree with others in that it doesn't look like something I will continue to do. I could understand if they were charging less for these than a DVD, but charging the same amount or just slighly cheaper, for an inferior product just doesn't work for me.

Unless they upgrade to a higher quality video, I don't see how iTV is going to work out either. Who would want to watch a grainy version of the movie on their big screen (or not-so-big screen) TV?

Posted by: Braden | September 18, 2006 11:10 PM

This is what they said at every Apple advance: "Nobody will buy them."

Works perfectly for me. No commercial blandishments, no burnt fossil fuels. No re-payment to watch them again. No fat old men with barrels of popcorn crossing in front to get to the loo.

The movie environment of my dreams.

Posted by: WingSpread | September 19, 2006 06:01 AM

I agree with the idea that it is for a bright (DVD extras?) filled future. But I did buy a movie.
I recently gave up on cable, and travel too much for Netflix to be worthwhile, presently.
I have to say that it (Shakespeare) looks great, even on a 32 inch LCD HDTV. Played from iPod.

It did take around 2.5 hours, but I'm on a particularly old (copper) Verizon DSL area.
Here's looking ahead...

Posted by: Bill Morocco | September 19, 2006 07:08 AM

What you people are forgetting are the many consumers out there that don't use Handbrake to rip their DVDs to iPod format. To them, $9.99 sounds like a pretty good deal to have a movie on their iPod that they otherwise couldn't load onto their iPod.

That doesn't mean I won't stop using Handbrake, but for everyone else who still thinks Handbrake is that thing in their car, this is not such a bad thing.

Posted by: GCarden | September 19, 2006 12:02 PM

What you people are forgetting are the many consumers out there that don't use Handbrake to rip their DVDs to iPod format. To them, $9.99 sounds like a pretty good deal to have a movie on their iPod that they otherwise couldn't load onto their iPod.

I'm going to respectfully disagree with that comment. The majority of consumers out there who don't use Handbrake have no need for digital movies on their computers at this point in time. And I know even less people who want to watch a feature length film on a 2.5" iPod screen. Every person I've talked to about the new iTunes Store has no intention of downloading movies. Some have bought just one movie to try it out, but will not be buying any more.

I agree with most of the comments here that Apple has a long way to go still. Very few people will actually be purchasing movies from iTunes, at least until Apple gets its pricing, selection, and quality issues sorted out. Oh yeah, and the iTV will definitely help too.

Posted by: Scott Silverman | September 19, 2006 12:12 PM

http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2006/09/20060919142943.shtml

These people. That's who.

Posted by: Matt House | September 19, 2006 12:32 PM

September 18, 2006

Who actually buys these movies?

Authored by Scott Silverman at 10:38 AM

Category | Music » iTMS

Digg it | del.icio.us

Comments

Post a comment

Recent Entries

About MacUser

Subscribe/RSS

Tip us off!

Recent Comments

Categories

Archives

Mac Publishing Sites

Links