Thursday, January 25, 2007

streaming movies


for some reason, google video doesn't seem to recognize me as a blogger user, despite the fact ITS THE SAME COMPANY. incompatibility sucks. so I can't post Revolution OS directly on the blog, but you can find it here, in case you want to listen to the dulcet, scandinavian-inflected tones of Linus Torvalds to lull you to sleep.

I also want to point you guys to an article in today's nytimes on netflix's new entry into the semi-crowded streaming video space. best thing about the netflix service: if you're already a subscriber, its there. no additional fees. other best part: your usage is metered by time, not per movie:
But the huge, mind-bending, game-changing advantage of this model is that you can channel-surf movies just the way you channel-surf TV. You can watch 15 minutes of “Single White Female,” decide you’re more in the mood for a documentary, and switch over to “Super Size Me.” When a buddy tells you that “Twister” is lame except for the climactic final sequence, you can fast-forward right to that part. You can watch the beginning of “Gladiator” tonight, and watch the rest of it a month later, without having to re-rent it or pay late fees.
worst part: its streaming instead of downloaded, which means you have to be connected to the Internet to watch. not a problem if you're lying in bed at home, but much less convenient if you're on a plane.

what do you think? do you think this will be the "killer app" that will lead to the death of the DVD? would you use it? why or why not? what affect do you think this will have on the movie business? positive? negative? neutral?

2 comments:

Elena said...

I actually read about this today in Forbes and there was some user commentary -- it said that the selection wasn't that great and they had some trouble uploading the movie. I think that once they get more movies on the service -- and w/ Apple Inc.'s new iHome which connects your computer to your TV it might not be such a bad deal...

Patricia Shi said...

I think as for now, there are still people renting DVDs because the Internet connection affects video quality, personally, I hate the pauses, and the bad graphics sometimes. Also, watching a DVD at home with your TV is much better than watching it on your 13" laptop screen. Of course, as technology grows, the quality will improve, everything will be online, you can connect your computer with anything possibly, certainly your huge TV screen, so eventually DVD will be out, something better may even come along...