“NBC Universal and Walt Disney-ABC TV Group said Wednesday that they would jointly make available their quirky hospital comedy ‘Scrubs’ on Apple Computer Inc.’s iTunes store and share the revenue,” Meg James reports for The Los Angeles Times. “Although ‘Scrubs’ is produced and owned by Walt Disney Co.’s Touchstone Television, this season’s episodes will be available on NBC’s ‘storefront’ on the iTunes site because NBC broadcasts the show. The move, which comes as networks race to profit from digital downloads of their popular programs, is significant because it marks the first time two rival media companies have joined together in a digital download deal.”
The NBC-Disney deal also marks an important truce in the behind-the-scenes battles between studios and network executives over who should control the ‘window’ for digital downloads of their shows,” James reports. “Touchstone and CBS Corp., for example, have been squabbling over next-day downloads of CBS’ adventure series ‘The Amazing Race,’ which is co-produced by Touchstone. CBS contends that networks should share in the profit because they invest in building awareness and promoting the programs. Until ‘Scrubs,’ all of the TV shows offered on iTunes have been those that a single company owns and broadcasts. For example, Touchstone produces ‘Lost’ and ‘Desperate Housewives’ and airs them on ABC.”
Full article here.
Click for NBC’s “Scrubs” via Apple iTunes.
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Related article:
Apple adds NBC’s ‘Scrubs’ to iTunes Store TV Shows lineup, adds ‘Season Pass’ for ‘South Park’ – March 29, 2006
Great news — and I don’t want to hear anyone bitching about the video quality; I’m heading out of town and my iPod is well stocked with “Daily Shows” and “Colbert Reports” to cover any and all flight delays…
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MW=”standard”, as in “Apple is setting the standard for delivering entertainment to folks on the go.”
Sensible deal. The broadcaster should have the program show under their banner. The question, I’m sure, is one of how to split those profits. Following the TV model won’t work for this. No advertising revenue. 50-50 is probably fair. Nobody’s putting a lot more money into making them available or advertising online.
Great! Now if we could only get House.
I’ll take the $1.99 version without advertising anyday. Season passes are a neat way of providing a little discount incentive to buy the whole series or multiple shows.
Portable video is great, I travel a lot and love taking my favorite entertainment with me.
I want more content on ITMS. The creators and publishers should be free to explore other avenues for distribution as well but that’s not a good reason to not sell the content on ITMS.
ITMS works now! Let viewers give you money now!
I don’t know why people keep saying, the quality sucks on these videos. Its not meant to be played as HD yet or blown up on huge televisions. Its meant for portable use, like using it on the ipod and on the road. If I want quality I am gonna go and buy a DVD. I am sure this will change in the future especially when movies become available on Itunes.
“You’ve got your love online
You think you’re doing fine
But you’re just plugged into the wall
And that deck of tarot cards
Won’t get you very far
There ain’t no hand to break your fall
Well . . .
I know what I’ve been told
You gotta know just when to fold
But I can’t do this all on my own
No, I know, I’m no Superman
I’m no Superman
That’s right!”
Now we need foxy boxing, mud wrestling, and the Japanese show, “Super Jockey.”
I have been sceptic about the need of videoplayback on mp3devices, but after I got an iPod 5G for christmas I ´ve filled it up with all `Fawlty Towers`and all the english `The Office” episodes. It´s qiute handy actually.
And now Scrubs, wich is a brilliant show ! Cool, or Kewl as we say nowaday…
http://geirwerner.squarespace.com/
Please give me seasons 2 and 3 of Upright Citizens Brigade on iTMS since Comedy Central won’t put it out on DVD.
Excellent! Just in time for me discovering GiftMe.tv. I just bought a US iTunes card from them and downloaded Lost Season 2 from Japan!
Just for the heads up…