Apple today announced that new movie releases from major film studios and premier independent studios are available for purchase on the iTunes Store on the same day as their DVD release. New releases and catalog titles will be available from 20th Century Fox, The Walt Disney Studios, Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures, Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Lionsgate, Image Entertainment and First Look Studios. Movies purchased from iTunes can be viewed on an iPod with video, iPhone, Mac or PC or on a widescreen TV with Apple TV, with new releases priced at US$14.99 and most catalog titles at $9.99.
“We’re thrilled to bring iTunes Store customers new films for purchase day-and-date with the DVD release,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s vice president of iTunes, in the press release. “We think movie fans will love being able to buy their favorites from major and independent studios.”
New releases available for purchase on the iTunes Store this week, concurrent with their DVD release, include “American Gangster” and “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.” Other popular titles now available for purchase include “Juno,” “Cloverfield,” “I Am Legend,” “There Will Be Blood,” “Alvin and the Chipmunks” and “Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story.”
The iTunes Store is the world’s most popular online music, TV and movie store with a catalog of over six million songs, 600 TV shows and over 1,500 films including 200 in stunning high definition video (HD titles available for Apple TV only). With Apple’s legendary ease of use, pioneering features such as new iTunes Movie Rentals, integrated podcasting support, iMix playlist sharing, the ability to turn previously purchased tracks into complete albums at a reduced price, and seamless integration with iPod and iPhone, the iTunes Store is the best way for Mac and PC users to legally discover, purchase and download music and video online.
Movie purchases and rentals from the iTunes Store for Mac or Windows require iTunes 7.6.2, available as a free download immediately from http://www.itunes.com/. iTunes movie purchases and rentals require a valid credit card with a billing address in the country of purchase. iTunes Movies are available in the US only and are $9.99 for library title purchases and $14.99 for new release purchases and $2.99 for library title rentals and $3.99 for new release rentals, and high definition rental versions are priced just one dollar more with library title rentals at $3.99 and new release rentals at $4.99. Short films are available to rent for 99-cents. Movies can be previewed, purchased and watched on iPod classic, iPod nano with video, iPod touch, iPhone and on a widescreen TV with Apple TV.
Apple’s iTunes Store just got that much better and, if they keep this up, Steve Jobs’ little “hobby,” Apple TV, isn’t going to be just a hobby anymore.
Love me AppleTV!
Good, it is about time. I am hoping for something on the Apple TV front at macworld. It is a great product.
I bet the blockbuster and netflix executives are throwing chairs around the offices like monkey boy now… the digital world is being taken by storm!
All we need now , is 72 hour rental!
The Apple TV is no longer a little Hobby. I would guess that by this Christmas shopping season Apple TV will be selling like hot cakes at an iHop.
There is still a few little things that need to be fixed with the Apple TV. Like Playing Music Video’s sequentially without you selecting to play the next one, including play randomization of Music Videos. And Playlist support for Music Videos and Podcasts would be a nice touch.
The Apple TV is the best Internet Media Playback unit on the market today and it’s getting better and with a better selection too.
Great. I just got mine a few weeks ago, and I am lovin’ it.
I didn’t notice Miracle Pictures on the list, though.
(Their slogan: “If it a good picture, it’s a Miracle…”)
So, purchases are available on same day, what about rentals?
I am wondering about rentals too. When will a RENTAL be available? “day-and-date”? I hope so, but I have a feeling they wont. Jobs gave a big explanation at this years MacWorld about how they now “understand” their customers: people don’t want to own movies, they want to rent them. I’m all for the option, but if they artificially delay rentals by some period of time, it’s sort of counter productive to his statements.
Take off the rosey-colored glasses, MacDailyNews and dig a little deeper. The report says NOTHING about rentals being available day-and-date. And aren’t rentals — including HD rentals — the big deal???
Love my Apple TV, hate my stupid FAP!
now we just need content and the world will be grand
This is a nice first step, but until they have HD versions of movies available day and date, it’s a bit hollow. An Apple TV basically requires an HDTV afterall, and watching movies in 480i on a 50″ 1080p HDTV looks like crap.
Standard Def or HiDef?
$9.99 to $14.99 is pretty expensive for DVD quality at this point. You can easily find DVDs for less than $10 once they have been out for a year.
Oh yea, can you burn your movies to a DVD for a hard copy backup?
The next one who mentions HD is a douchebag.
NYTimes has article on NPD numbers that show Blu-Ray player sales are stagnant, even after the death of HD-DVD. People are choosing to buy cheaper upconverting players.
The slower the movement to Blu-Ray, the more likely AppleTV succeeds, as it allows time for network technology to advance, and content owners to experiment.
i think it will take a little time before the studios give us what we want. having a digital rental and buying option for all movies day and date with the brick and mortar release will stand at the end of this path. apple would like to offer this rather sooner than later. it is the studios being afraid of cannibalising their other sales. but they will soon learn that this is the only way to go. isn’t it just amazing how much more we mere mortal customers know about their business than they do? clueless suits. again apple has to help an industry to keep their business alive through transformal times like these like it did with the music industry (which would have already died if apple didn’t invent a way of selling music online in a way people actually want).
um… rentals, please. i want to rent, not buy, charlie wilson’s war and there will be blood. kthxbai.
Jim of D
Do we get to pick whose douchbag we are?
That could make a difference…
The video tide is turning. We are experiencing the new wave in video distribution. The tsunami is next.
Yes. Please give it to us at least at 720p and 5.1 DD.
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”grin” style=”border:0;” />
I LOVE MDN!!! You brighten my day!
What about rentals? I’m not paying $14.99 to own that garbage.
HotinPlaya: All we need now , is 72 hour rental!
??? Why would you need that? You already have a 30-day rental period. It’s just 24 hours from the moment you finally start watching it. Surely you don’t three days to watch a movie?
——RM
umm… how about giving us ANY movies at all on the iTunes Store here in Canada?!!
I mean, who really wants to watch CBC TV shows on their AppleTV…. (“Degrassi: The Next Generation” – WTF???)
I’m assuming that movies will show up in Austria, Ireland and 10 other countries before Canada, just like the iPhone…