No other movie studios signed with Sony's PlayStation download service yet
By Richard Lawler 
posted Jun 28th 2008 11:18AM
posted Jun 28th 2008 11:18AM
Ok, we know the PlayStation 3 is getting a movie download service this year - but apparently much work remains to be done. Variety checked into the situation and sees the number of movie studios signed on at present stands at exactly one: Sony Pictures. Never fear, because being late to the party could benefit Sony as it negotiates deals with other studios similar to the ones already in place for Xbox Live Video Marketplace and iTunes. Also on board is the possibility of transferring flicks to PSP, although that and any other features that expand on the functionality already seen on other services could slow down a deal. We're torn, while having another competitor in digital downloads (and another way to enjoy movies on our PS3) as soon as possible sounds good, we might be willing to wait if it means Sony's leverage can swing more features (or at least some leeway to the DRM currently in place on other services).[Via PS3 Fanboy]
They should just outsource to Amazon. They already have the infrastructure and must have already sorted out much of the contractual hell.
*Snort*
Sony? Sony relax DRM restrictions?
Is this a surprise? Sony should have partnered with Netflix or Amazon as a download device for their on-demand services. Yes, the slice of profits wouldn't be as large, but at least the PS3 wouldn't continue to be pigeon holed as a Sony only delivery mechanism.
Both of those services still need to get in gear and at least offer HD-Lite (720p w/dolby digital) for me to become more interested, but who wants to buy a dedicated device for every download service? Anyone?
with ps3, whats the point of relaxing drm?
why even relax? there aint any point to that.
if i can get it to work on my ps3, no problem. if i can transfer to psp, with a big fat memory card. even better.
so... nice, but it would be great if they signed up more content than just sony pictures stuff.
it's kinda funny, all the people that want to do away with DRM, to justify their sharing/stealing via p2p.
I just want DRM to work well, ie play on my devices and be able to enjoy them without authorization problems. ie if i am travelling, and have content on my laptop or p2p, not need internet to watch it.
Hear hear. DRM isn't inherently bad as long as it allows the kinds of uses that one would expect from their media, without constant, inconvenient authorization steps.
Agreed, not all of us are living beyond our means and paying 10% of our entertainment budget to things we bought last year(making them cost like twice as much in the long run as well) and can afford the few things we actually want to see and hear.
Nowadays you can get a single song, albeit a compressed version of the single song you want, whereas a decade ago it was like half the price of a full album almost for that one song, and if that one song wasn't the hit song, you had to buy the album.
The choices are greater, the costs are more often less, but there's more whining than ever....
I think other studios will sign on, this is brand new, in the meantime Columbia has a huge catalog to start.
"all the people that want to do away with DRM, to justify their sharing/stealing via p2p"
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Yeah, of course, that's all it's about.
*rolls eyes*
Wow the Corps have you guys well trained.
But to return to topic.
Even Sony now launch a downloading competitor to Blu-ray.
So much for downloads not taking a firm hold in the current market.
Well man.. didn't you hear...it's gonna take at least 10 years for downloads to pick up LOL
You again?
well only less than 25% of the people in the world even have access to the internet and out of that 25% fewer have anthing better than 56k and the ones with broadband dont have really high speeds that could handle downloading many huge files.
and also downloads are greatly compressed HD downloads arent as good as a good quality SD DVD transfer in most cases. Why get hdlite when you could get HD on bluray with 1080p far less compressed , of course one day we will see 2, 4 and 8 k home video but then we will need a higher capacity disc or a flash cartidge.
I do not get why some people are suggesting this is a bad thing.
Yes, right now only Sony has signed on. But, when movies came to iTunes there was only Disney. Within months they had almost all major studios. Same thing happened with Amazon.
Yes, there are other download services. When was having alternatives a bad thing. The more options the better.
Yes, Sony should have launched this earlier. Sony has been going through a bit of culture shock recently and I hope that they are learning lessons.
I just don't see how having another option for entertainment is a bad thing.
what's funny is that people are already using digital downloads in MILLIONS.. much more then Blu-Ray itself.
We have already several digital download services.. Xbox Live leading the way, Apple TV that offers HD as well and officially has ALL studios on board, Vudu that offers 1080p and DD+ downloads and Roku and some smaller attempts too.
Sony is already pretty late to the show and it will take a lot of convincing for them to get any other non Sony studio onoard as they are already everywhere. However there is a possibilty they will come because it doesn't really cost them anything, just another way of selling their movies which is the obvious benefit of digital downloads.
The real thing here is for everyone crying that digital downloads are not ready or whatever.
Do you people understand that millions and millions of people are using digital downloads. You might be one of them. When you download a 1.2gb patch for your PS3 you are essentially using a digital download service. Whether it's a piece of software or a movie it doesn't matter. Perfect example is Qore. It is like 2gb or almost 2gb download that you have install. This might as well be a 720p or at least 1080i movie instead. At 4gb you have a great 1080p quality too. So it's not too far away. Codecs are getting more and more efficient, whether it's AVC or VC1.
Let's face it here, Sony has realized that digital downloads are indeed here and now rushes to release something to compete. Something btw, that everyone was saying for a while.
This is the story with PS3 from the start. They've been catching up with features for almost 2 years and are STILL behind.