4Flix.Net has launched its FREE*PRESS annual subscription service, allowing unrestricted access to hundreds of feature-length movies, television shows, cartoons and independent films for a full year. At a blockbuster introductory price of just $99 per year, it provides a wealth of media to the consumer and features dozens of new titles added each month. Subscribers also receive access to an exclusive suggestion form, providing them with a voice in selecting the type of content added over the course of the year.
Most other video subscription sites offer only streaming media or restrictive Digital Rights Management (DRM) systems, and when an account expires, access to those files are lost.
According to Cory Doctorow, former spokesman for the Electronic Frontier Foundation and writer for the influential technology blog BoingBoing, there are several advantages to 4Flix.Net’s DRM-free content. “If you amass a video collection of DRM video from Microsoft, Apple, Google, Yahoo or other restrictive suppliers, you’re dooming yourself to either throwing out all your movies when you want to change platforms, or keeping multiple players and libraries from these competing companies that are attempting to woo the entertainment companies to licensing content for their locked-down platforms by promising ever-tighter restrictions in their players. With 4Flix, you get great movies and a great investment because the movies arrive without DRM, you can be sure that you’ll be able to play them back on devices and players from lots of companies for the rest of time. You can give them to your kids in your will or donate them to a school library. They’re yours, and you can use them as you see fit,” Doctorow stated in the press release.
With 4Flix.Net’s FREE*PRESS, the files are downloaded into the hard drive for viewing at any time on a computer, television or iPod, with no expirations or DRM hassles. These high-quality H.264 MP4 files can also be burned to DVD for backup and even viewed on upcoming high-definition DVD players, providing a great investment value for the long-term.
H.264 content is the next generation video entertainment standard, enabling 4Flix.Net content to be played back on a wide variety of platforms, such as:
– Macintosh: Apple’s new “living-room ready” Mac Minis and iMacs
– Windows: Microsoft’s upcoming Origami Ultra Portable PCs, Intel’s VIIV
– Apple’s video-capable iPod
– Sony’s Play Station Portable (PSP)
– Blu-ray: Sony’s upcoming PlayStation 3
– HD-DVD: Toshiba’s HD-XA1 HD DVD player
4Flix.Net’s FREE*PRESS subscription is online at http://www.4Flix.Net/freepass/
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Related article:
Mac users need not apply: Movielink launches Windows-only download service for major motion pictures – April 03, 2006
I’m thinking this is via a loop hole somewere
Don’t expect to get an A movie made since the 1960’s. No blockbusters here.
Are they gonna have a slew of gay porn as well?
first post? prolly not, but hey something i will never use
another iTunes “killer”…i think not
They are initially providing public domain movies.
I would guess based on their site that the movies are presently tailored for the iPod.
>Windows: Microsoft’s upcoming Origami Ultra Portable PCs, Intel’s VIIV>
Upcoming!!! hahahahahahahaha
I hate to say this, because it didn’t use to be true, but if Cory Doctorow likes it, it’s got to be limp.
The studios are obsessed with DRM and copy prevention. What’s going to persuade any of them to provide worthwhile content for a scheme like this ?
This must surely be some way of deriving income from content that nobody else wants. It just doesn’t add up otherwise.
These are all movies that never had DRM to start with.
Apart from 2 independent movies from 2005, a couple of movies from 1980 and 1981, the rest are all pre 1974 movies, and the majority is in black and white. Many date back to the 30’s.
If you’re into the classics, this is great, but don’t expect to find any of the DVD-age movies here.
I think it is misleading for the site to tout the absence of DRM without explaining to the reader what type of content the site has.
Oh boy! I can buy “Rescue from Gilligan’s Island” for only a buck ninety nine!
The content will need to DRASTICALLY improve for this to stay afloat!
The Trial of the Incredible Hulk is an impossible to find Sci_fi classic that was shown once on network TV and dustbinned thereafter.
The service fills a nice little niche. Emphasis on niche.
The selection is obviously pretty bad right now. They have a chance if they can convince some actually independent studio to distribute at least some content this way. Even then, it will remain a niche store because, as others have said, the majors will never release their content this way.
However, bravo for someone doing it this way – someone has to try.
As for it being “misleading”, I think the kind of selection is implicit.
iTunes is not platform specific and you don’t have to throw away anything if you move to a different computer. You can also burn your music but not video’s yet. However if this is a legitimate business is should be interesting how long they last without DRM before they get sued by the motion picture association. Burning a DVD of a movie is supposed to be illegal even for personal use according to those warnings you see when you start a DVD movie.
They got it right. I hate DRM. As much as I like Apple, If I were going to pay for movies and could get DRM-free content at a fair price somwhere else, I would definitely do that.
I just download my movies with bittorrent though, and I don’t see that changing any time soon.
How much does it cost?…$99 USD. This is an amazing value…. Not bad.
…when you consider the number of movies you have access to for this one low fee. So show me.
What movies do I get? Browse our online store to see our wide selection…. Right now that means: 212+ current movies + at least 24 additional movies each month…. Nothing!!??
As an added bonus, we will provide access to an exclusive suggestion form, that lets FREE*PASS subscribers tell us what type of movies they would like to see more of!<i> Fantastic! An <i>exclusive suggestion form … what a great idea! Let me get this straight: The current content is worth about $0.50, so $98.50 a year gets me a FREE*PASS to make suggestions as to what movies you should warehouse?
Welcome to Rancho Burgers! We have no burgers for sale, but for $1.99 you can make suggestions as to what burgers we should sell. … … … And a nice day to you too sir.
This service is a long way from being useful. They have 20 categories with about 10 obscure titles in each, plus there’s a lot of double listing of titles.
Not worth anywhere near $99 per year at this time. Now if they had 5,000 titles, adding 24 each month, that would be another thing entirely.
I don’t expect this service to survive.
With titles like Bride of the Gorilla and White Pongo, how could they fail?
On their site, I looked to see what they were offering. I eagerly clicked on ‘New Releases’.
Normally I might have expected recent blockbusters, some sequels and quite a few movies I’ve never heard of, but I was somewhat taken aback to see that many of their ‘New Releases’ were directed by Hitchcock, one starred Faye Wray and there were movies starring Chaplin or Keaton. But to their credit, some movies were actually in colour and only a few of them were silent.
I think that they are making a big error by misleadingly labelling recently added stuff to their catalogue as ‘New Releases’. The rest of the world uses that term to describe films that have only just been finished.
The package that they have put together has a very limited appeal and it’s hard to see any way that this venture might succeed. It’s even more unlikely to fail when you consider that their subscription of $99 per year is merely an introductory offer. If it looks poor value at that price, just think how bad it’s going to look when they hike up the price.
The studios are not about to give away movies for free. This is a pipe dream.
But even if everything were available for download for free with no DRM and the bandwidth became available, it would still be no threat to Apple. Apple would probably love it. They provide the coolest user friendly interface and highest quality hardware and will still be the pick of the litter. Their market would go up, not down.