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Free iTunes Television Show Downloads

gkarris said:
We here in the USA will probably get the same sort of messages when you end up getting "Dr. Who" and we try downloading from the UK store...
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Don't worry, if you want Doctor Who epiosdes and iTMS doesn't offer them, I'll just start up "Shard's iTMS" and post them all. ;) I have every single Doctor episode (apart from the lost ones) since 1963 available, with my whole collection totaling about 170 GB. I'd be glad to share if Apple doesn't want to! :eek: ;) :D

That reminds me, the Christmas Invasion airs here in just a few more days! :cool:
 
Pilot eposides

As Apple adds more shows -- hopefully in a couple of weeks at MWSF -- I hope they make the pilot episodes of some of the more obscure episodes free. If iTunes has an entire season of a show I haven't seen, I might take a chance on one episode and wind up hooked for the season.

I know $1.99 isn't a lot to bite off on an impulse, but I can't tell you how many purchases the free download songs have led me to make.
 
jimsowden said:
Anyone who likes the SNL skit should know that it's done by three dudes who previously ran this website:
http://thelonelyisland.com/

Theres a lot of quality entertainment on there, including an never aired TV pilot. Once they started working for SNL they stopped producing for that site, but it's still great.
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Some of that stuff is hillarous. The pilot episode i would have thought was a hit but apparently not. They overdid the castaways sketches(even though they were hillarous). The spoof of that song"Bing Bong Boys" was hillarous though. Thanks for the link.
 
Porchland said:
As Apple adds more shows -- hopefully in a couple of weeks at MWSF -- I hope they make the pilot episodes of some of the more obscure episodes free. If iTunes has an entire season of a show I haven't seen, I might take a chance on one episode and wind up hooked for the season.

I know $1.99 isn't a lot to bite off on an impulse, but I can't tell you how many purchases the free download songs have led me to make.
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After purchasing well over 2000 songs at the iTMS over the past few years, I have been resisting the impulse to start buying videos. I've heard all about "The Office" and I know I'd like it but I've never managed to see an episode...and don't want to join in late...I'm quite sure if I buy the first episode I'll get hooked and the $1.99s will start racking up as fast as the 99c iTunes. Perfect way to increase the buzz around a growing cult favorite. It's just too easy...must not click Buy Now...must resist...
 
jimsowden said:
Anyone who likes the SNL skit should know that it's done by three dudes who previously ran this website:
http://thelonelyisland.com/

Theres a lot of quality entertainment on there, including an never aired TV pilot. Once they started working for SNL they stopped producing for that site, but it's still great.
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Here's a different group with the same kinds of stuff...

http://oldeenglish.org/
 
i live near the magnolia bakery in the SNL video. those are some damn fine cupcakes.
 
Not available in Canada

It's great that Apple has made the SNL skit a free download but inane that it's not available in Canada. If it's free, what does it matter where you download it!?
 
JonHimself said:
Yes, Pibb references!! Up here in Canada few people know the greatness of that drink. I used to drink it aaaall the time in Florida on vacations and now me and a few friends have to make a trek into the US to pick this stuff up.. can't even get it in Buffalo anymore, we had to drive to Ohio for it! I love seeing Pibb references in TV (so far Family Guy, American Dad and SNL that I've seen)
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Mr. Pibb is a Coca-Cola product. If it isn't available in Canada, you should send Coca-Cola Canada some emails about the situation.

From my understanding, Coke debuted (and emphasized) Mr. Pibb as an answer to Dr. Pepper at the expense of another Coke product named Tab. Tab virtually disappeared for a good ten years here in the States, but I started noticing it back on store shelves last year although its not a wide release. I think Coke is testing it in different regions...
 
CaptainHaddock said:
Battlestar Galactica is the best show on TV right now*, so this should great news, especially with the new episodes coming up.
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Nah, its # 2. New Doctor Who is # 1, but is still not legally available here in the States... It makes its official US debut via DVD Region 1 disc set on Valentine's Day...or possibly on iTunes before then (fingers crossed)...

I predict that the Torrents are gonna blow up Christmas Day circa 1pm PST when *The Christmas Invasion* episode hits the net shortly after it airs in the U.K....
 
hob said:
OK American TV show makers, listen up - here's the deal. I am a British citizen
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Don't you mean *subject*? :)
Just kidding. We love our British cousins...*


hob said:
So c'mon gimme Lost - and whilst you're at it, why not American Dad, Family Guy and The O.C...? I'm fed up of stealing it :(
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Deal. But do something about BBC Worldwide trying to overcharge for New Doctor Who which is keeping it off the cable networks like SciFi over here in the States.


*And because of that, I did not make any reference to your status as a "virtual" citizen of the European (dis)Union.
 
For those blaming Apple for them not being available in Canada, wake up. It's the CRTC that is stopping them. You know those rules on Canadian Content...
 
~Shard~ said:
That reminds me, the Christmas Invasion airs here in just a few more days! :cool:
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I know. I can't wait to fire up the Torrent client at 1pm PST on Sunday when it'll probably be online at that point.

Hope you are recording it digitally so you get that higher resolution of PAL goodness. Hmmm...wonder if the DVD release supports anamorphic widescreen...I hate to lose resolution...
 
Trowaman said:
FREE?

GALACTICA?!?

*orgasm*

anything of BSG and free makes me happy
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Looks like it makes you a little more than just "happy".

I'd like to say that on the announcement of video downloads on ITMS, I wrote that free video downloads would be very nice. Someone told me they'd never do that b/c of the amound of bw it would take. To whoever that was, I just have one thing to say...

HA!
 
nagromme said:
I'm a big Galactica fan, but I missed the end of the fall season... so I'll have to hang onto this clip until I catch up... via iTunes or Netflix.

Sounds like just publicity mainly, but at least it's a show that deserves some! I could read the thread and find out... but no spoilers for me.
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If I can/when I can download the spoiler for the next shows of Battlestar, I am not going to watch it. I don't want to spoil the excitement. I want to view the new shows it w/o knowing what happens before hand.
 
Testing copy protection?

So, an exclusive Battlestar show. We all know how pirated Battlestar is... perhaps this is a test of Apple's copy protection.

... lets say the TV network wants to know whether Apple really does have a good system. If this show makes it onto Bittorrent - then it MUST'VE come from the iTunes version.
 
Lynxpro said:
I know. I can't wait to fire up the Torrent client at 1pm PST on Sunday when it'll probably be online at that point.
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You and me both! Definitely looking forward to some new Doctor Who, and especially seeing how Tennant does in the role, as I have my concerns...
 
Yay & nay

Well, I'm all for free shows. Pity they didn't give away anything worthwhile. SNL just isn't funny anymore (not that it ever really was), and The BSG thing is more or less just a 21 minute long commercial for the show.

I can't expect Apple to cater to my tastes anyway. Contrary to my hopes, the world doesn't revolve around me.

Still, it''s good to see freebies. I'm sure plenty of folks appreciate it more than I. For those of you outside of the U.S., you really aren't missing much, trust me.
 
What happend to some videos?

Speaking of videos, does any know what happened to the used-to-be-free for viewing but now is no longer in the iTMS?

I used always watch Counting Crows, "Big Yellow Taxi," which is their version (not the newer version with movie clips from "Two Weeks Notice"). It was up before any of the videos for purchase were up. You can watch it as long as your were connected.

Now, "Big Yellow Taxi" is gone from viewing and you can't even buy it if you wanted to. I've contacted Apple to request to put it back on (even to purchase), but haven't seen it yet. You can get it from other music sites but the video looks worse and it's the movie version.

Thanks for the info if you got it...
 
~Shard~ said:
You and me both! Definitely looking forward to some new Doctor Who, and especially seeing how Tennant does in the role, as I have my concerns...
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Well, he's no Paul McGann, but seeing as RTD does not wish to give the role back to him, Tennant will be a good second place pick... :)

Still, it bugs me that neither Eccleston nor Tennant are/were willing to sign on the dotted line for a 5 year contract whereas McGann was but was robbed of the chance to do the show once the Fox Network passed up on it because they were disappointed at the ratings the TV Movie pulled because they picked the very worst timeslot ever to present it in...

But I digress...
 
lancerx78 said:
i live near the magnolia bakery in the SNL video. those are some damn fine cupcakes.
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Yo any pro knows that the real dilly at Magnolia is the banana pudding and the ice box cake. The cupcakes are a smoke screen to keep the amateurs from eating the good stuff ;)

TM
 
jelloshotsrule said:
send them a pm ;)

https://forums.macrumors.com/posts/1817935/
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I never got a PM. ;)

I didn't say it would never happen, just pointed out that it requires a lot more bandwidth, which it still does. I'm sure that as long as it is profitable for Apple to do this they will. Particularly since, they already host (with Akamai's help) all the movie trailers, even some in HD, so they are used to big bandwidth requirements.

On top of that neither of these videos constitute "a free episode of the week" in the was I interpreted Jerry Spoon's original post. As others have pointed out the free videos posted this week are really weakly disguised ads for their respective shows, and neither constitutes a full episode.

In that sense that are more reminiscent of movie trailers or the free album samplers that have been on iTMS for REM, Moby, Gorillaz, ... instead of the Single of the week, or discovery downloads. Apple may well have been compensated by the producers of SNL and BSG to provide them free offsetting the cost of the additional bandwidth.

The main point of my original post still stands. Incorporating BT (or similar technology) into iTunes would provide a cheaper method of delivery for big files like free videos, and would also enable wider adoption of video podcasts, since the podcaster's bandwidth requirements would be reduced.

B
 
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