CinemaNow satisfies burning desire
Service is first to offer movie downloads that can be burned to disc
By Jennifer Netherby -- Video Business, 7/19/2006
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Beginning Wednesday, Sony Pictures, Disney, Universal Studios, MGM, Lionsgate and several independent suppliers will begin allowing consumers to download and burn movies to DVD through Internet movie service CinemaNow.
CinemaNow will launch a beta Burn-to-DVD store with 100 catalog movies, including Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle, Scent of a Woman and Barbershop, with prices starting at $8.99.(Click here for our review.)
In addition to the major studios, music video supplier EagleVision and indie Sundance Channel will make movies available for burning through the service.
“From our vantage point, this is the first real user experience in the world of digital distribution of movies that delivers on what people are looking for,” CinemaNow CEO Curt Marvis said. Marvis noted that customers have been asking for burnable downloads for years, more so since the company began selling permanent downloads in April.
“We think it’s time to signal to the market that Hollywood is serious about allowing people to make their own copies of download-to-own,” said Benjamin Feingold, worldwide president of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. “We know consumers desire an expanded usage model that includes backup storage. We think it’s good to move forward with a test.”
Other studio partners weren’t available or declined to comment.
Most of the initial releases will be priced around $12.95, roughly the price of a store-bought catalog DVD. CinemaNow said it plans to heavily experiment with pricing as it figures out what consumers are willing to pay.
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The deals don’t include new release movies, but CinemaNow hopes to add those in the coming months, Marvis said.
CinemaNow and rival Movielink began offering movies on a download-to-own basis in April with great fanfare, but those downloads have been slow to sell because users can only watch the movies on a computer (VB, 4-3). Most believe the download business won’t really start until consumers can watch the movies on their TV in the living room, which today’s deal makes possible.
The announcement could add pressure to technology, consumer electronics and entertainment companies involved in discussions aimed at extending CSS—the copy-protection system used on commercially burned DVDs—to movie downloads, spurring more download-to-burn deals.
The Hollywood studios, consumer electronics companies and technology companies involved in those talks are expected to meet next week to try to wrestle out an agreement to enhance CSS’ security and allow download-to-burn.
Sony’s Feingold said the CinemaNow test is meant to “sensitize” those involved in the discussions. “I think it gets them moving,” he said, acknowledging that not all studios are in agreement on the proposed amendment.
Feingold said it isn’t clear yet whether Sony will sign other download-to-burn deals at this time.
For now, CinemaNow is the only company to offer legally burnable movies, giving it a lead on rivals but likely not for long.
Rival Movielink announced Monday that it had joined with Sonic Solutions to allow consumers to download and burn movies to disc for playback on any DVD player (VB, 7-17). Movielink and Sonic have no studio deals, but given that Movielink is owned by five major studios, it would seem almost certain that those deals are imminent as soon as the CSS amendment is approved.
CinemaNow is able to offer download-to-burn because it is using FluxDVD technology rather than CSS. Sonic and Movielink would likely use CSS.
FluxDVD comes from German tech developer ACE GmbH, which was founded by CinemaNow’s chief technology officer. CinemaNow has exclusive provisions limiting who can license the technology, keeping competitors at bay.
Marvis said FluxDVD has tougher copy-protection built in to it that makes it more difficult to rip and burn than a standard DVD with CSS protection. However, noting that nothing’s failsafe, Marvis said FluxDVD and CinemaNow are already preparing an updated version to improve the protection.
CinemaNow used FluxDVD for its burnable adult movie downloads, which it launched in April to show the studios that movies could be burned to disc safely.
“We real-world tested it,” Marvis said.
Neither Marvis nor Sony’s Feingold expect download-to-burn to dent retail DVD sales at this point. Feingold pointed to the lower picture quality and the limited number of titles that will be available.
But he said it could get in-store movie burning moving forward. The studio has already gotten interest from DVD retailers who want to offer downloads on their Web sites and in store kiosks.
“I think it can only be additive to the overall category,” he said.
