The Problem with Internet-Based Movie Downloads
The Problem with Internet-Based Movie Downloads -
The Internet Isn't Connected to the TV, Stupid!
As of April 3rd, six major Hollywood studios announced plans to sell movies over the Internet. These are not rentals but actual movies that can be viewed on your PC. The author of this article goes into quite some detail about why he believes they will not work.
This guy seems kind of pissed off about the $20 to $30 dollars websites like movielink.com and cinemanow.com will be charging for each movie download. His reasons are pretty simple. Why pay 30 bucks for a movie on the internet when you can find it for target for half the price?
He seems to believe that is the opposite of what internet buyers want. Internet buyers are there for the simple fact that online downloads are cheaper than store prices, but i feel there is more to internet buying than just price. People including myself are lazy and I use the internet so I don't have to take a ride down to Best Buy or Target. Convience is another factor to internet buying that the author seems to have forgotten about.His other grudge with these new downloads, which I agree with is that any movie downloaded can only be watched on a computer monitor. Who wants to watch a movie on a small computer screen when they could be watching in in front of their big screen tv? Nobody, exect, a very small percentage that already use these and other websites for music and video downloading will want to get a download...convert it to a dvd... and then only be able to use this dvd in their PC. These websites are going to have to find a way to either make the movies cheaper so consumers will buy them based on cost or add other featurs to the downloads making them enticing to the avid movie watcher.
I think that the author is a little pessimistic about the success of these movie downloads but he does have a point about watching movies on your PC. I don't really like the idea of doing this myself but I'll be the first one to jump on the bandwagon as soon as the price of an online movie download drops to $15 bucks or less.
3 Comments:
I agree that the prices websites like cinemanow.com are charging to download a movie to your computer are ridiculously high. Why spend $20-$30 to download a movie onto your computer when you can just go out and buy the movie for $15, and watch it anywhere you want; your house, your friends house, hell, even on your computer if you have a DVD-ROM, which everyone seems to have nowadays anyway. I also heard in a class presentation today about this same topic that these companies do not even allow you to burn the movie onto a DVD once you have downloaded it. Personally, I think this is the best idea in the history of the world since Corey Feldman deciding to pursue a career as a rock star. I give these new companies a week before their execs are living in cardboard boxes in the slums of LA.
Since these movies are just being introduced, the price tag is going to be high. Online users may perceive the price as high, but they have to think about a fair price. If the product is perceived to be worth the price, then it is fair to a user. Personally, I would wait to download movies from the internet because the price is eventually going to drop if the demand becomes high enough. Also, the companies may upgrade their systems after some testing and create a service that allows users to view the movies on a DVD player. But, on the downside, users have to beware of the movie content and quality. You never know what you are paying for on the net.
I gotta agree with the writer about the price of a movie. There's no way I'll spend $30 for "V for Vendetta" when it comes out. I'd rather ride down to Best Buy and pick it up for $20 and buy a Value Meal on the way home with the money I saved. I think this business does have a chance if they can find a way to lower their prices, although I still would think twice about purchasing it to view on my computer. They would have to allow me to burn it onto a CD so I can put it on my big screen and sit on the couch, not make me watch it in my computer chair.
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