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Apple Removes Download Options From Quicktime Trailers Website

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MacRumors

macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
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It appears that Apple has begun quietly phasing out its trailer download options from the trailers.apple.com website, effectively eliminating 1080p trailer availability.

Previously, the site gave users the ability to stream trailers in 480p or 720p, along with providing download options for 480p, 720p, and 1080p. Trailers uploaded to the site after an approximate date of May 22 no longer have any download options and can only be streamed in-browser at 480p or 720p.

trailersbefore.jpg
Trailer options before 5/22​
trailersafter.jpg
Trailer options after 5/22​
While trailers uploaded before May 22 can still be downloaded, Apple appears to be removing the option from movies with multiple trailers that have a trailer uploaded after that date. For example, Disney Pixar's Monsters University has trailers that were uploaded on the following dates: 6/20/12, 3/08/13, 5/20/13, and 5/22/13. None of these trailers have download options.

Disney's Planes, on the other hand, has trailers that were uploaded on the following dates: 3/15/13, 04/04/13, and 5/17/13. Each of these trailers can still be downloaded at all resolutions, including 1080p.

So, while older trailers can still be downloaded from the site, Apple appears to be removing downloads from older trailers as newer trailers are added, slowly phasing out the availability of trailer downloads altogether.

It is not clear at this point why Apple has begun phasing out movie trailer downloads, but we have contacted the company for more information.

(Thanks Eduardo and Theo!)

Article Link: Apple Removes Download Options From Quicktime Trailers Website
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2013/05/24/apple-removes-download-options-from-quicktime-trailers-website/
Porco

Porco

macrumors 68040
Mar 28, 2005
3,315
6,909
Well that certainly sucks and is rather baffling. I've often downloaded movie trailers at 1080p, and stuck a load on a flash drive or hard drive to watch on my TV. I guess they don't want people like me to go to their trailer site anymore.
 
JayCee842

JayCee842

macrumors 6502a
Jan 21, 2013
589
0
Porco said:
Well that certainly sucks and is rather baffling. I've often downloaded movie trailers at 1080p, and stuck a load on a flash drive or hard drive to watch on my TV. I guess they don't want people like me to go to their trailer site anymore.
Click to expand...

People use this?? :confused:
 
S

StealthGhost

macrumors regular
Oct 13, 2010
131
0
This is the only way I view trailers for movies I think i'll love (Star Trek 2 for example)

I don't want to watch grainy 480 or 720p...full 1080p was great.

I guess it's back to youtube, may as well get rid of them all together.
 
S

segers909

macrumors regular
Jun 7, 2009
208
19
Belgium
I've always used the "download" option, since that opens up the native quicktime player and allows me to watch the trailer in full screen. Is such an option available for the web player?
 
Eminemdrdre00

Eminemdrdre00

macrumors 6502a
May 10, 2008
662
511
Internaut said:
Perhaps it's time Apple phased out Quicktime? My experience of streaming Quicktime video has never been good in my experience, while Netflix, Youtube and iPlayer all deliver reliable 720p streaming over a comparable connection.
Click to expand...

I have NO idea why they aren't using HTML5 on their trailers site. How is QuickTime any different than Flash here? It's not!

----------
segers909 said:
I've always used the "download" option, since that opens up the native quicktime player and allows me to watch the trailer in full screen. Is such an option available for the web player?
Click to expand...

Only if you use Safari.
 
Porco

Porco

macrumors 68040
Mar 28, 2005
3,315
6,909
JayCee842 said:
People use this?? :confused:
Click to expand...

TVs? Yeah, they're nice big screens for viewing video on. Sure I could stream it if I wanted, I choose not to, what's the problem? If anything I'm doing Apple a favour if I watch any of the trailers I download more than once. Which I often do, and is one of the many reasons I do it the way I do.

Eminemdrdre00 said:
HD-Trailers.net still has download links:
http://www.hd-trailers.net/page/1/

For example, Apple had an exclusive on the Don Jon trailer this week and it didn't feature any DL links, but HD-Trailers.net has a 1080p link straight from Apple's server.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I just tried getting the URL out of a trailer (> inspect element), and changing the '720p' in the filename to '1080p' gave me the 1080p file in Quicktime 7. All very odd.
 
Last edited:
T

tdsmth

macrumors newbie
Jul 21, 2011
29
0
Can't believe this. Apple was the last official site out there providing high-quality, 1080p encodes. Truly don't understand why they'd stop. As a huge movie fan, it sucks that 1080p trailers have just become an "endangered species," so to speak. They'll definitely be more scarce, and we'll only be able to get them from third-party sites like HD-Trailers now. Wasn't technology like this supposed to be moving the other way?
 
\-V-/

\-V-/

Suspended
May 3, 2012
3,153
2,688
You could always use a program like Jaksta or various other website video rippers. Kind of lame to take an extra step to download videos from the site, but it's still possible to do so with third-party apps.
 
D

dazed

macrumors 6502a
Jun 23, 2007
911
211
samcraig said:
Server drain?
Click to expand...

If people simply downloading trailers caused server drain then Apple are really doomed :)

It's probably them wrongly assuming that everyone has unlimited data and high speed connections, and wont mind restreaming the same trailer over and over again.

I'm also guessing they just want to keep people coming back to the site to keep their hit rates up, so by doing this it forces them to do it (that's the Apple way :D)
 
jakebot

jakebot

macrumors member
Mar 2, 2007
82
1
Vancouver, BC, Canada
Blah

This kinda sucks. It wouldn't be so disappointing if there was still a 1080p version, but it's kinda going back in time to only be able to watch 720p on a beautiful 27" iMac screen. We want it back apple!

I've always saved the 1080p versions to watch later.
 
S

samcraig

macrumors P6
Jun 22, 2009
16,779
41,982
USA
dazed said:
If people simply downloading trailers caused server drain then Apple are really doomed :)

It's probably them wrongly assuming that everyone has unlimited data and high speed connections, and wont mind restreaming the same trailer over and over again.

I'm also guessing they just want to keep people coming back to the site to keep their hit rates up, so by doing this it forces them to do it (that's the Apple way :D)
Click to expand...

True. Could also be silly pressure from the studios to not want their content "owned" on devices but rather just streamed from providers.

Having worked in news before, I know that many cable/tv stations and studios put a lot of restrictions on how you can present their materials, for how long, etc.
 
Porco

Porco

macrumors 68040
Mar 28, 2005
3,315
6,909
\-V-/ said:
You could always use a program like Jaksta or various other website video rippers. Kind of lame to take an extra step to download videos from the site, but it's still possible to do so with third-party apps.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's true, and it's still possible with just Safari and Quicktime, but the other part of this is the removal of links for 1080p downloads. The 1080p files still seem to there right now, along with predictable urls/filenames, but if they're not going to link them on the trailers' webpages it could mean that could change soon, which would be a shame.
 
M

mkoesel

macrumors 6502
Mar 31, 2005
416
271
Might they be preparing to launch 1080p streaming for trailers? True, this wouldn't bring back the ability to watch multiple times without re-streaming, but it would at least give you the Full HD option again.
 
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