I was quite excited when I read the headline from the NYT that “At Last, Movies to Keep Arrive on the Internet.” Finally, I thought. Hollywood understands.
Then I read the article.
Om Malik , TechDirt, and others on Memeorandum sum up my thoughts.
How will this impact watching movies on mobile devices such as Tablet PCs and UMPCs? I’m afraid you’ll have to pay full rate for being able to copy the movie on up to two computers (including the computer you downloaded the movie to). For most of us, I don’t think this is an option.
Until Hollywood becomes comfortable with movie downloads, what I’d like to see is the TV and cable networks push their content out more digitally. For instance, I’d really like a PBS channel on my UMPC complete with access to the latest digital version of Nova. Yes, I’d pay, if it’s not too much. I think there’s a great opportunity for these networks to show how it’s done.