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

March 10, 2008

video

Lionsgate is a Digital Copycat (bonus feature: Apple to go Blu-ray?)

Posted Mar. 10, ’08, 9:01 AM PT by Dan Moren
Category | Video

RamboIn January, at Macworld Expo, Steve Jobs brought Jim Gianopulos, chairman & CEO of 20th Century Fox, onto stage to talk about the new iTunes Digital Copy venture. The idea is that certain DVDs would also include a digital copy of the movie that you could copy to your iTunes library—a legal end-run around the thorny legal issues of ripping DVDs. Fox was the first studio to start using Digital Copy, but it was strongly suggested they wouldn’t be the last.

Now, the other tasseled loafer has dropped as leading indie film distributor Lionsgate has announced that they’ll be giving the Digital Copy feature a shot in two forthcoming DVDs: Sly Stallone revival vehicle Rambo and Jessica Alba thriller The Eye. More titles will be forthcoming from the studio later in the year.

But here’s an interesting tidbit: Lionsgate is also reputedly going to be putting the Digital Copy on DVD and Blu-ray copies of Rambo and The Eye. Of course, while many PCs have Blu-ray drives, there’s still no native support in OS X for mounting or reading Blu-ray volumes yet—even if you pick up a third-party drive, you need extra software like Roxio’s Toast just to get the information off the drive. Recent reports suggest that Apple has been in talks with Sony about Blu-ray.

With the format war finally settled, does this hint that Apple will finally follow through on its position as a member of the Blu-ray association’s Board of Directors? I’m betting on Blu-ray drives in Macs by the end of the year. Any takers?


3 Comments

Christopher Bowns Author Profile Page said:

End of 1st paragraph: switch "lost" for "last". Dvorak user? :D

March 10, 2008 12:30 PM
Dave-O said:

I wanted to make some joke about a movie called The Lost. Turns out there was a movie with that title every year for the last 4 years. Near as I can tell, they all sucked (I had never heard of any of them).

March 10, 2008 12:37 PM
Goobimama said:

What's up with Apple. Blu ray drives eating up power in a macbook pro? okay. But what about the Mac Pro? At least get the software ready.

I'm pretty sure it's going to be a $20 for upgrade for the software...

March 10, 2008 3:36 PM

Leave a comment

 



Visit other IDG sites: