Amazon queues up downloads

UPDATE: ‘Unbox’ launched with titles from seven studios

By Jennifer Netherby -- Video Business, 9/7/2006

SEPT. 7 | Amazon.com launched its download movie service, dubbed Unbox, Thursday with films and TV shows from almost every major studio. Amazon.com’s main page had a link to the service and was offering free TV show downloads to users.

Unbox will include some combination of movie and TV downloads from program suppliers, including Warner Home Video, Paramount Home Entertainment, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, MGM Home Entertainment, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, Universal Studios Home Entertainment and Lionsgate. The service is being offered at www.amazon.com/unbox.

Users must install the Unbox player, from which they can then buy movie downloads.

“Now Amazon.com customers can choose to get videos delivered to their doorstep from Amazon’s DVD store or choose Amazon Unbox and download DVD-quality picture movies or TV shows to their PC,” Amazon VP of digital media Bill Carr said in a statement announcing the service.

Disney movies are not part of Amazon’s service. Amazon group product manager of digital video Roy Price wouldn’t comment specifically on whether it is in talks with Disney but said Amazon is continually looking to increase its selection. Industry sources say the studio has inked a deal to sell movie downloads through Apple’s iTunes movie service, which is expected to launch next week.

One studio source said Apple’s low pricing on feature film downloads (expected to be $9.99 and up) is part of the reason other studios haven’t yet signed on with iTunes.

Apple is the leader in music and TV show downloads but is increasingly perceived as aligned with Disney. Apple CEO Steve Jobs is on Disney’s board and is the largest shareholder following Disney’s acquisition of Pixar Animation.

Disney is the only studio expected to offer movie downloads through iTunes at launch, but others are believed to follow in the next year. The studio would not comment at press time.

Users won’t be able to burn movie downloads from Amazon or Apple to DVD, according to sources, however both sites are expected to offer new twists on movie downloads.

For now, CinemaNow is the only download service to allow burn-to-DVD, but others are expected to follow once the DVD Forum finalizes an agreement to extend CSS—the copy-protection technology used on commercial DVDs—to movie downloads.

Apple is expected to launch an adapter that would allow users to watch movies on a TV, sources say.

Amazon, meanwhile, will include RemoteLoad Technology, which will create a page—dubbed Amazon Your Media Library—where users can keep track of their digital movie, book and music purchases and access those downloads from any Unbox-registered computer. With RemoteLoad, users can buy a film and have it downloaded to another PC.

Even with Amazon’s entry and Apple’s expected launch next week, most say that until movies can be easily transferred and watched on a TV, the download business will remain small.

CinemaNow and Movielink have been offering permanent downloads since April, but sales have been slow.

“It’s very early in the growth of this industry. We know that in the electronic sell-through business, the user experience of only being able to play that file on a PC is very limiting for the consumer,” CinemaNow CEO Curt Marvis said, noting CinemaNow sells four to five times as many burn-to-DVD movies than only download-to-PC versions. “That’s a clear indication to us that people want to be able to burn a DVD and play it in their living room,” he said.

However, there’s no denying that Apple and Amazon will bring some big names to the movie download business once they formally launch.

Amazon downloads promise to be DVD picture quality and will be encoded in VC-1 and transferable to other computers and to Windows Media compatible portable devices. The site is even offering $20 worth of free videos with the purchase of a ZEN Vision: M 30GB player. (Click here to see our review.)

Unbox users will be able to begin watching downloads within five minutes after the movie starts downloading, similar to CinemaNow and Movielink.

TV show downloads will be available the day after they air on TV for $1.99 an episode.

Amazon movie downloads are available for rental for $2.99 and up or as a permanent download starting around $9 for older films with new releases such as Paramount’s Inside Man priced about $15.

Amazon’s Price said some rentals will be available in the pay-per-view window, which lags DVD, but others could be available in other windows. Permanent movie downloads will be available for purchase the same day they are available on DVD, Price said.

New and classic TV shows from CBS, Fox, Cartoon Network, Discovery, FX, MTV Networks and Comedy Central will be available through Amazon at launch. Older shows available will include Buffy the Vampire Slayer and all episodes of the original Star Trek series.