Why I'll buy discs instead of downloads

[photorebel]

as will many others, if this is the kind of treatment we will get

Link:
http://www.seekingalpha.com/article/...rotect-content

[Geech]

[J_UNTITLED]

Here's a quote regarding downloads as the "real future of home entertainment" in regards to Apple, Inc. and it's upcoming MacWorld event...

"It is going to the movies, likely announcing Tuesday the addition of movies for rent at its online iTunes Store for $3.99 apiece for 24 hours, the common window Hollywood has imposed on other digital movie rental services.

Apple will have lots of competition in this arena, but Apple "is setting the table for the consumer movie experience for the next 25 years," said Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster. "Today it doesn't matter but five, 10 years from now, it'll be how everybody will be watching movies."

[partridge]

But there is a huge difference between going to the movies and buying a movie to watch whenever you want. A cinema ticket is a bit like a temporary licence to view a movie; once you've seen it that's it all done. But you shouldn't have to worry about licences and DRM when you've paid for something that allows you to watch it whenever you want. This is why physcial discs will be here for a lot longer than the like of MS would like.

Look at what is happening with online music though, DRM being dropped by all the major companies, so there is hope yet. But I won't be buying any movies online until DRM is removed.

[181]

HD Download is going no where, fast. I have 2 Terabytes of storage on my computer. I have an 8Mbps connection (that is 8 Megabits per second which is 1 Megabyte per second, as there are 8 bits to one byte). If I had to download the equivalent of a Blu-ray movie (50 Gigabytes) at full speed (1 Megabyte oer second), it would take me 13 hours to download 1 movie. Of course, if every body was trying to download a movie at the same time, it would come to a screeching halt.

I would also have room for only 40 Movies with my 2 Terabytes of storage. If any of my drives crash, I would lose hundreds of dollars.

Downloading would be a nightmare. Coaxial cable lines running to your house have an inherent physical bandwidth cap of 10Mbps to 14Mbps. In order for downloads to become feasible and deliver you the quality of a Blu-ray movie, ISP's would need to rebuild their entire infrastructure and run uncapped fiber lines to every single household (which isn't happening in the near future).

You want to try and stream it? Blu-ray transfers data at a peak rate of 48MBps for Audio+Video+Subtitles. You think you can get a broadband connection like that? No.

If HD Movie downloads go anywhere, the DRM on it would make it near impossible for the average person to share the movie with a friend, sell it or even seamlessly play it in any device that supports the format, as you would be able to do with a physical medium like a Blu-ray disc.

What makes sense (and this is what they are planning on doing) would be to distribute a portable copy of the movie on a Blu-ray disc. It avoids this mess of HD Downloads.

[Joe Redifer]

Microsoft already offers HD movies for download on their Xbox Live service. The file sizes are really small, only a few GB per movie. That means the movies are compressed all to hell. That's what MS wants... digital downloading/streaming of movies. Personally, I'll take a physical disc or even a solid state flash memory cartridge (which is probably where we're really goin') any day.

[partridge]

MS have been so short sighted with their console, they had to release a whole new version to make good use of their download service and like you say it is all compressed, so while I'm sure it is perfectly watchable, they can't honestly compare it to what you get on a blu disc.

[Zaphod]

Originally Posted by Joe Redifer

Microsoft already offers HD movies for download on their Xbox Live service. The file sizes are really small, only a few GB per movie...

Also only at 720p, and you have to remember that the Xbox 360 cannot decode the higher resolution audio codecs so they bundle everything with only DD 5.1, which majorly reduces file size.

I agree that downloading HD content will go nowhere, and I think once Microsoft and the like realize this will never become mainstream, they will shift their focus for wireless streaming of HD content in it's raw disc form. I believe the physical medium will always be primary and then backing up that physical medium to the likes of a file server for wireless streaming would be secondary.

[snoupee]

i'm not sure about you guys, but in southern ontario we have monthly bandwith, which we would exceed if we wanted to dl more than one blu ray disc.

[d_rob1031]

Originally Posted by snoupee

i'm not sure about you guys, but in southern ontario we have monthly bandwith, which we would exceed if we wanted to dl more than one blu ray disc.

I was about to post that. I thankfully don't have a cap but I know a lot of people around the world do. The consumer is already having to buy a blu-ray box, they dont want another one to take a shelf-space, another remote and the learning curve that goes along with it. Plus the fact that the internet is not the most reliable on service in many parts of the world.

[Kairav]

I have go blu completely. I have a PS3 and a Vaio AR series with Blu Playback. I would love to carry all of my movies with me wherever I go and would also like to play them in any Blu player I have.

[blu-rayfan101]

Originally Posted by 181

HD Download is going no where, fast. I have 2 Terabytes of storage on my computer. I have an 8Mbps connection (that is 8 Megabits per second which is 1 Megabyte per second, as there are 8 bits to one byte). If I had to download the equivalent of a Blu-ray movie (50 Gigabytes) at full speed (1 Megabyte oer second), it would take me 13 hours to download 1 movie. Of course, if every body was trying to download a movie at the same time, it would come to a screeching halt.

I would also have room for only 40 Movies with my 2 Terabytes of storage. If any of my drives crash, I would lose hundreds of dollars.

Downloading would be a nightmare. Coaxial cable lines running to your house have an inherent physical bandwidth cap of 10Mbps to 14Mbps. In order for downloads to become feasible and deliver you the quality of a Blu-ray movie, ISP's would need to rebuild their entire infrastructure and run uncapped fiber lines to every single household (which isn't happening in the near future).

You want to try and stream it? Blu-ray transfers data at a peak rate of 48MBps for Audio+Video+Subtitles. You think you can get a broadband connection like that? No.

If HD Movie downloads go anywhere, the DRM on it would make it near impossible for the average person to share the movie with a friend, sell it or even seamlessly play it in any device that supports the format, as you would be able to do with a physical medium like a Blu-ray disc.

What makes sense (and this is what they are planning on doing) would be to distribute a portable copy of the movie on a Blu-ray disc. It avoids this mess of HD Downloads.

I agree 100% Are we all going to fill up are hard drives with just movies?

[greekjgg]

Originally Posted by blu-rayfan101

I agree 100% Are we all going to fill up are hard drives with just movies?

Within a few years we'll have 50 TB drives in our house that we use as media servers. We'll use these to store all our ripped movies and music as well as store our downloaded content.

In a few years 50 TB's will be dirt cheap backup storage drives. HD space does 2 things. 1. Gets bigger 2. Gets cheaper

[xtop]

lets say we do have 50tb drives in the near future. we'll then also have even larger movies. movies are still compressed a lot to even fit on 50gb blu-ray's

[kolasi]

lol microsoft is just caught up thinking people will want to dl movies like they want to dl music.

[supersix4]

Originally Posted by blu-rayfan101

I agree 100% Are we all going to fill up are hard drives with just movies?

and what happens if it gets corrupted lol hours spent downloading plus trying to talk the sites into letting you re-download I like having my disks

[jw]

Time Warner already trying to capitalize on video Downloads. If you are a current Time Warner Cable customer read this
http://blogs.moneycentral.msn.com/to...rnet-fees.aspx

[jw]

Originally Posted by jwbbud

Time Warner already trying to capitalize on video Downloads. If you are a current Time Warner Cable customer read this
http://blogs.moneycentral.msn.com/to...rnet-fees.aspx

I didnt figure this would need its own thread as there will probably be 10 or so popping up shortly