iTunes Has Sold Over 200 Million TV Episodes

[EricNau]

We aren't there yet, and believe that it will be 5-10 years before this is possible worldwide.

Technologically, we're already there. ABC offers their entire lineup in HD online, and other networks such as NBC, CBS, FOX, and Discovery are starting to follow suit.

At this point, all that's needed is the cooperation of the networks.

If Apple left the TV download business, and offered streaming through iTunes (and Apple TV) with the cooperation of networks and advertisers, they'd generate a market with far more promise and future. Right now, all they have to look forward to is a dead end.

 

[ucfgrad93]

I have purchased several TV shows.

 

[mambodancer]

Streaming?

I agree that this is the future.

If I can select any show 24/7 and watch it for a small fee or for free, then yes.

We aren't there yet, and believe that it will be 5-10 years before this is possible worldwide.

When I travel, to relax in my hotel room, I find it nice to watch an episode of one of my favorite TV shows. Watch the show then hit the sack. Saves funds too.

Streaming video is fine except that...

-Comcast is now limiting digital downloads (and that includes streaming) to 250GB per user per month

-streaming is fine if you have a persistent internet connection whose bandwidth doesn't vary much (our neighborhood has constant outages)

-Most streaming sites (like Hulu) still interject commercials. I prefer to watch my content without the interruptions.

-I can't take a stream and store it on my iPod or iPhone or laptop and watch it at my convenience.

RE: DVR's-

While I own an EyeTV and Miglia Max it takes forever to convert a recording to a format I can watch in iTunes or AppleTV.

But the biggest issue I have is that I still have to suffer through program changes, network crawls across the bottom of the screen, compressed screen images to make room for advertising and the commericials.

I like having both options.

Hulu and Joost are great examples of video streaming sites.

iTunes allows me to purchase the content that I really enjoy, like watching more than once, or want to carry with me on the device of my choosing.

And, as the selection of Movies in the store increases, I find myself purchasing the digital download version of the movie rather than the DVD copy as it is more affordable.

 

[Ugg]

Who's buying these shows and why? Do you not have a DVR? Are you trapped in a closet with nothing better to do than watch reruns of your limited library, over and over and over? Are you really gonna watch "Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader" eight times? You people scare me.

I don't own a TV so of course I don't have cable. There's not that much that I'm interested in watching so an a la carte system works just fine for me. I do have a subscription to Netflix, but they don't carry everything. I like the choice that iTunes offers.

 

[Tilpots]

Why spend the money on iTunes when the individual networks offer the shows for free on their website?

 

[yoda13]

Why spend the money on iTunes when the individual networks offer the shows for free on their website?

I would rather watch on my HD TV first of all, second, my cable does NOT offer HD, and third, and I am serious here...the cable also does not offer DVR...I live in the sticks...I like being able to watch shows whenever I want even if its the middle of the night...plus I am weird, I will watch shows over and over again...😉

Plus, I used to buy all my favorite shows on DVD, now I only have to come up with hard drive space to store them, rather than the clutter that my DVD boxes used to create...

 

[Tilpots]

I would rather watch on my HD TV first of all, second, my cable does NOT offer HD, and third, and I am serious here...the cable also does not offer DVR...I live in the sticks...I like being able to watch shows whenever I want even if its the middle of the night...plus I am weird, I will watch shows over and over again...😉

Plus, I used to buy all my favorite shows on DVD, now I only have to come up with hard drive space to store them, rather than the clutter that my DVD boxes used to create...

You, my friend, are definitely the exception that proves the rule!😀

 

[Fulgham]

And just cause my skimming over this thread didn't see anyone else already griping about the lack of content on the Canadian (and I'm assuming other international stores)...

I would kill to have iTunes bring ABC and Fox to the Canadian store... and I know many others up here would as well! (that is if us friendly Canadians could kill someone... we might boycott their brand of beer or something)

<flaming>

 

[gauchogolfer]

Why spend the money on iTunes when the individual networks offer the shows for free on their website?

Do these networks allow you to download the shows to your computer or iPhone/iPod?

 

[macsmurf]

And just cause my skimming over this thread didn't see anyone else already griping about the lack of content on the Canadian (and I'm assuming other international stores)...

I would kill to have iTunes bring ABC and Fox to the Canadian store... and I know many others up here would as well! (that is if us friendly Canadians could kill someone... we might boycott their brand of beer or something)

<flaming>

Lack of content is the case all over the world except for the US. It's like the companies refuse to take our money.

Well, maybe some time in the future american media companies will need a little extra foreign capital, but apparently they can't be bothered at this point 😉

 

[Michael CM1]

i bought 3 HD films. it's pretty awesome. except you can't tell sometimes if the movie you're buying is HD or regular. No option, yanno

If you're talking about purchasing movies on iTunes, you literally can't buy them in HD. They don't exist.

 

[Tilpots]

Do these networks allow you to download the shows to your computer or iPhone/iPod?

If you have a DVR, you don't need to stream them over your iPhone or iPod.

Here.

 

[EricNau]

Streaming video is fine except that...

-Comcast is now limiting digital downloads (and that includes streaming) to 250GB per user per month

You use the same amount of bandwidth downloading a TV show, however.

-Most streaming sites (like Hulu) still interject commercials. I prefer to watch my content without the interruptions.

True, but the commercials are significantly shorter and less frequent than broadcast television. I've found that the average online episode contains about two minutes of commercials. If someone offered you $3 for just two minutes of your time, would you do it?

 

[X38]

So when are they going to finally come out with a DVR for iLife and AppleTV?!

 

[benthewraith]

Considering the prices, I'm rather surprised.

I haven't purchased any episodes this season; I can't justify the exorbitant costs. Nearly all of my favorite TV shows are available for free online in HD. Sure, you have to watch about 2 minutes of ads per episode, but if it saves me $3 it's well worth it (that's the equivalent of $60/hour!).

In my opinion Apple is holding us back in this market. It seems rather clear that the future lies with streaming TV content, not downloads. I wish Apple would move on.

If you have Comcast, or any box equipped with Firewire, you should be able to write the episode to your Mac.

 

[corinhorn]

So when are they going to finally come out with a DVR for iLife and AppleTV?!

I doubt they ever will.

 

[/dev/toaster]

Apple needs to step up on HD content, its far too small right now and its increase is fairly slow. They need more TV shows in HD, right now none of the shows I want to buy are in HD. There are about 5 seasons of shows I want to purchase off iTunes, but not buying SD. SD looks too crappy on a 61" at 1080p.

I still don't understand why I can't purchase movies in HD. Sure, I can rent them but why not buy them ?!

 

[The Tall One]

I DO NOT understand the appeal of purchasing a television episode for 2 dollars like this. It is WAY too expensive. I would never ever pay for a single episode when I can DVR a series in HD, or, netflix the DVD of the entire series. The price isn't comparable. My netflix subscription, if divided into the number of episodes I watch in a month comes out to pennies per episode. And when I put a regular DVD into my xbox with HDMI and watch it on my 26inch HDTV, the quality is amazing!

Apple is going to have to offer a subscription based service or episodes for pennies in order to attract more people.

 

[/dev/toaster]

If you have Comcast, or any box equipped with Firewire, you should be able to write the episode to your Mac.

Comcast is still disabling these ports. I have a firewire port on my past 4 DVRs from Comcast and none of them work. I called to have a replacement and they said they can't guarantee it will work. I explained the FCC mandate, however the people who answer the phones make minimum wage and tell me to take it up with corporate. Best part is, they won't give me a number of who to contact.

I have also complained to the FCC and get no response. *grumble* I wish TiVo didn't have an up front cost for equipment. I am just not going to pay $399 for a DVR (HD) *AND* pay a monthly fee.

 

[The Tall One]

If you have Comcast, or any box equipped with Firewire, you should be able to write the episode to your Mac.

How? Does the DVR show up as a drive on your mac? Do you have to telnet into it or ftp into it or some such?

 

[/dev/toaster]

I DO NOT understand the appeal of purchasing a television episode for 2 dollars like this. It is WAY too expensive. I would never ever pay for a single episode when I can DVR a series in HD, or, netflix the DVD of the entire series. The price isn't comparable. My netflix subscription, if divided into the number of episodes I watch in a month comes out to pennies per episode. And when I put a regular DVD into my xbox with HDMI and watch it on my 26inch HDTV, the quality is amazing!

Apple is going to have to offer a subscription based service or episodes for pennies in order to attract more people.

Although I would love to see a subscription service it will never happen. They are making too much money off what they already have.

Here is a great example of when I purchase things.

- We missed the final episode of hells kitchen. There was nothing good on TV that night, so we purchased the episode and watched it. $2 is still far cheaper then going to the movies and I don't have to wait 3 days for the DVD to come in the mail.
- I don't just watch what I purchase once, I watch it many times over. Good example of this is Venture Bros, I have watched it like 30 times now LOL.
- When my DVR fails, it happens ... I live in California now which tends to have strange power blips.

Sounds to me like you aren't the typical AppleTV user. Those who purchase content on iTunes listen or watch it many times over. Watching a DVD on a 26" HD screen is not noticable. Try doing the same thing on a 61" 1080p set and you will suddently see why everyone is complaining about SD. After 40" thats when things really start to become noticeable.

Netflix is cool and all, but doesn't provide you with that instant gratification. I have no patience, I hate waiting for crap in the mail and I am too lazy to go to the store. Not to mention, digital over the net media is far more environmentally friendly then the over abundance of packaging used on DVDs.

 

[overcast]

I watch maybe two or three shows a season: this year, South Park and Mad Men. I'm catching up on the Wire (and at $25–30 per season, it's half as much as buying the DVDs and I don't have to wait for Netflix). I watch The Office and 30 Rock on Hulu now, but used to download those.

Do I watch them over and over? No. But buying season passes for the few shows I watch is a hell of alot cheaper than paying for cable and a DVR subscription.

You shouldn't be scared because some people use technology differently than you do.

Yeh except you have to wait for Apple to upload them to you. You know what's even cheaper, renting them through Netflix in HD or even watching them streaming online for absolutely nothing, HULU.

 

[MrCrowbar]

If you have Comcast, or any box equipped with Firewire, you should be able to write the episode to your Mac.

Don't buy an aluminum Macbook then 🙂

I'm pretty depressed at the state of televesion here in Germany. All channels only show seriously bad reality-TV **** or things that are as bad for your brain cells as doing multiple lines of Cocaine while banging your head against the wall until it stops hurting. Then there's the load of commercials (surpassing 1/3 of the total time) that are repetitive, but better quality than the actual shows. Ever switched through all the channels a couple of time and stuck with a channel that ran commercials because it was the least annoying? Welcome to Germany.

Then there's basically one hot spot in a week, where every channel has a somewhat watch-worthy show/movie. All at the same time slot. With commercials. In terrible german translation (no way to get the original language, not even with digital or pay-TV). And standard definition (they abandoned it...). There used to be reruns some time ago so you could watch or record a show/movie you missed. Not anymore, reruns are gone. Missed one episode of your favorite show? Ha, you're screwed. Wanna download it on iTunes? Screwed again, there's nothing there on iTunes over here. Gotta wait a few years until it comes out on DVD...
😡

 

[chris200x9]

you say sold I say "leased"

 

[TumbleDryer]

Why can't we purchase HD movies?

Why are there no HD TV shows in other places than the US?

Why the hell does your 'region' matter? If someone wants to pay to watch your work let them do so. Why does where they live even factor in all this?

Why does my dog rub his butt on the gate post?

Why are loads of TV shows still in 4:3 format?