Kiosk.net

I always thought Netflix would be the one to break this new technology, but now sources are pointing toward Amazon.com launching an online VOD service aimed at selling more DVDs.

Multiple unnamed sources have all testified to Amazon’s impending VOD service which would let users download movies for a fee, and then use that fee as a credit if they choose to purchase the DVD of the movie they just streamed.

The article also goes over a few related points including Netflix’s VOD scheme, Comcast’s On-Demand service, and the silmotaneous release model debuting with Soderbergh’s “Bubble.”

Setting up the infrastructure for downloadable full feature movies not only allows for clever multichannel sales like the proposed Amazon model, but also paves the way for another idea we’re quite fond of here at Ars: simultaneous releases, in this case theatrical and online. As release windows shorten and move closer and closer together, it seems inevitable that movies in the future will be released through alternative channels alongside the theatrical release, and Internet delivery doesn’t even have to deal with pressing and shipping physical media like DVDs.

Of course this is only a semi-substantiated rumor in my mind, so take it with a grain of salt. This is definitely a cool idea though, and an excellent application of VOD technology if it is true. With a powerful media PC and a good quality stream, this may be a very successful endeavor by Amazon, always a trailblazing company.

This entry was posted on Friday, January 27th, 2006 at 4:10 pm and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.