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Research Study: iTunes Video Failing To Duplicate Music Success
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Rentals are the key
I buy music, rent video. This isn't that complicated.
If I'm going on a trip, I want to be able to load a movie or two onto my iphone, watch them, and be done with it. I will likely never watch them again, so paying $10 for them isn't worth it to me.
IF, and that's a big IF, I could record them onto DVD for future usage, I would buy kids shows (Thomas, Wonderpets, Pixar Movies, etc) instead of traditional DVDs... but without the ability to record onto DVD its a dealbreaker.
Apple is a smart company... they know how the movie store is doing. I expect something big concerning rentals soon.
I buy music, rent video. This isn't that complicated.
If I'm going on a trip, I want to be able to load a movie or two onto my iphone, watch them, and be done with it. I will likely never watch them again, so paying $10 for them isn't worth it to me.
IF, and that's a big IF, I could record them onto DVD for future usage, I would buy kids shows (Thomas, Wonderpets, Pixar Movies, etc) instead of traditional DVDs... but without the ability to record onto DVD its a dealbreaker.
Apple is a smart company... they know how the movie store is doing. I expect something big concerning rentals soon.
The cost is insane, and the selection is too limited.
Music works because it introduced cherry-picking the tracks you want, and the cost per track is low enough to make impulse buying happen - and downloads are fast enough so that you are only a few minutes away from getting your song (on average).
Video is a different kettle of octopi. Costs are way out of hand, and Amazon (and next day delivery from a much larger selection of a product that cost far less but provides better quality is almost as convenient).
In the UK, iTunes video fails for the same reason that the BBCs ill-fated iPlayer does. It doesn't deliver anything new, and there are no cost/convenience/quality benefits. I've got a FreeView DDT receiver hooked up to my Mac running EyeTV. I get transmission-quality programs (which can be automatically transcribed to my iTunes library - and onto my iPod) with no DRM or time limits - and access to far more channels than just the BBC (who needs iPlayer). There is far more content out there than I could ever watch, and (having paid the license fee and bought the hardware) I can do so at no additional expense. Looking back at my recordings, I find I'm only watching around 3 hours of TV a week anyway (just finished recording Heros Season 1 - which is not even available to me from iTunes (and would have cost me more than buying the season box set if it had been).
Music works because it introduced cherry-picking the tracks you want, and the cost per track is low enough to make impulse buying happen - and downloads are fast enough so that you are only a few minutes away from getting your song (on average).
Video is a different kettle of octopi. Costs are way out of hand, and Amazon (and next day delivery from a much larger selection of a product that cost far less but provides better quality is almost as convenient).
In the UK, iTunes video fails for the same reason that the BBCs ill-fated iPlayer does. It doesn't deliver anything new, and there are no cost/convenience/quality benefits. I've got a FreeView DDT receiver hooked up to my Mac running EyeTV. I get transmission-quality programs (which can be automatically transcribed to my iTunes library - and onto my iPod) with no DRM or time limits - and access to far more channels than just the BBC (who needs iPlayer). There is far more content out there than I could ever watch, and (having paid the license fee and bought the hardware) I can do so at no additional expense. Looking back at my recordings, I find I'm only watching around 3 hours of TV a week anyway (just finished recording Heros Season 1 - which is not even available to me from iTunes (and would have cost me more than buying the season box set if it had been).
Meh, I don't see myself buying videos from iTunes until they have HD or very high quality movie downloads >= DVD quality. I typically record TV shows/re-encode older seasons of episodes (ie Simpsons) for my iPhone and that gives me plenty of content.
Seeing that NBC has been wallowing in 4th place for the past several years, iTunes certainly hasn't done that good of a job making them popular then.
I think this study makes sense. The only time I have bought TV shows online is for a few show's early seasons that aren't on DVD (Top Chef). Every other need for video I can get more reasonably priced and better quality through TiVo, Netflix, or simply buying a DVD/BluRay disc. And who cares about putting a movie on my iPod when in most situations where I'd have time to sit down and watch it my laptop (if not my TV) is likely sitting right nearby?
Music worked because there was already a substantial "illegal" market for mp3s and iTunes came in and legitimized the process. While there's that same market for movies, its never been as substantial (or as popular in the mainstream), so Apple's had more work cut out from them this time.
But until there's HD content, I see no point in investing a lot of money in video.
iTunes movie rentals would be amazing. I would spend way too much money there...
If iTunes puts advertisements in their TV shows they would lose me as a customer. The reason I pay $1.99 for shows from them is so I don't have to watch commercials.
If iTunes puts advertisements in their TV shows they would lose me as a customer. The reason I pay $1.99 for shows from them is so I don't have to watch commercials.
Agreed. I want a true DVD experience. Resolution, 5.1 sounds, extras, the ability to burn my own copy.
If they could go HD that would really be something.
Didn't Steve Jobs declare 2005 "The Year of HD" back at MWSF 05? Sounds like Mr. Jobs has to catch up to himself in this respect then...
Who in their right mind would spend $10 on a low quality, DRM laden movie? It was a lame business model to begin with.
You either need DRM-free HD to own for $10-15 (that ain't gonna happen in the near future), or a subscription rental model. Apple really needs to look to Netflix -- Apple can charge a bit more per month because there is no queue and there is immediate downloading. Unlimited download plans are unreasonable because of bandwidth concerns and unnecessary because even Netflix is throttled by the constraints of time/mailing.
So a rental model that is something like:
$9.99 - up to 2 movies
$14.99 - up to 5 movies
$19.99 - up to 10 movies
$29.99 - up to 20 movies, and then $3.99/movie thereafter.
DVD-quality, DRM that allows iPhone/iPod/AppleTV playback for 7 days, no burning. Netflix would still be cheaper, but for the non-Handbraking types, I think this would be an attractive deal.
You either need DRM-free HD to own for $10-15 (that ain't gonna happen in the near future), or a subscription rental model. Apple really needs to look to Netflix -- Apple can charge a bit more per month because there is no queue and there is immediate downloading. Unlimited download plans are unreasonable because of bandwidth concerns and unnecessary because even Netflix is throttled by the constraints of time/mailing.
So a rental model that is something like:
$9.99 - up to 2 movies
$14.99 - up to 5 movies
$19.99 - up to 10 movies
$29.99 - up to 20 movies, and then $3.99/movie thereafter.
DVD-quality, DRM that allows iPhone/iPod/AppleTV playback for 7 days, no burning. Netflix would still be cheaper, but for the non-Handbraking types, I think this would be an attractive deal.
I'd love to see iTunes offering documentaries impossible to find otherwise... and would gladly pay the price to get some kind of subscription to have access to all National Geographic or BBC documentaries.
There's a niche with hard to find/old movies.
Well, that's my opinion, and usually it's not worth much
There's a niche with hard to find/old movies.
Well, that's my opinion, and usually it's not worth much
Until they offer HD I'm not buying!
Until Apple starts offering HD quality downloads, I'm not buying anything.
The quality of the few videos that I have purchased from iTunes is pathetic. Since any purchase I make is going to be with me for a long time, I am not going to buy something that is going to look terrible in the future.
If Apple had an upgrade policy that would automatically upgrade my purchases to the state of the art resolutions when they occur, I would not have to worry about my library becoming obsolete. That would be a great incentive to buy from Apple iTunes.
Until Apple starts offering HD quality downloads, I'm not buying anything.
The quality of the few videos that I have purchased from iTunes is pathetic. Since any purchase I make is going to be with me for a long time, I am not going to buy something that is going to look terrible in the future.
If Apple had an upgrade policy that would automatically upgrade my purchases to the state of the art resolutions when they occur, I would not have to worry about my library becoming obsolete. That would be a great incentive to buy from Apple iTunes.
I want HD content and movie rentals on the music store. And forTV I want HD or BR and surround sound support. Thank you.
Amen. Give me an avenue to watch this content in the first place, and make it rentals for the movies and we have a deal. After that they can make it HD and give 5.1 surround to sweeten the pot. Right now, there is no way I am paying more than $4 to watch a movie I can get somewhere else. And there is no way I can suffer through a low res version of anything on an HDTV.
I agree, but you can always back things up or burn them to disc.
The AppleTV need DVR (built in EyeTV). As I say they're unlikely to go that route.
Don't forget that a lot of people travel by train/bus/plane and watch video on iPod/iPhone. This is also a perfect market for Apple that they are just not tapping into.
Never once have I purchased a video from iTunes. Until High Definition is offered I shall refrain from doing so.
That's one thing a lot of people do not understand and blame Apple anyway which goes with your next statement...
Which is why things are priced the way they are. It also goes as to why there is a lack of content selection. Apple WANTS to add more but most of the movie industry does not want to support it since they make more money in DVD sales. $20 buck (mostly) for a movie when I can buy it digitally for $9-$12/14 bucks or bitTorrent it for free. Apple wants to put all this content (movie,music,tv) in digital format but at a price that's reasonable.
iTunes isn't the real reason this model doesn't work (yes it has a share in the overall issue) but it's the money grubbers that make it not work.
I would be curious to see some numbers how for example iTMS video sales compare to say Napster's revenue, or how AppleTV compares to TiVo.
That's exactly what I thought when I read that. "Why interview Canada? We don't have videos in iTunes. If we did, I'd buy em like cah-razy!".
Yeah, seriously. I bet they did that intentionally to skew the statistics to suit whatever agenda they have, because anyone who gave this any thought would realize that surveying Canadians would give the same answer: we don't download TV shows, we don't download movies -- not because we're not interested, but because we CAN'T!
Watch it turn out that the people they interviewed were 75% from Canada and 25% from the States. Statistics can be made to show anything you want...
What a surprise that people aren't lining up to pay $1.99 to see TV shows they can watch (and TiVo) for free, or buy on DVD at the end of the season for less, or $13 to buy movies that you can get on DVD (with better picture and sound) for the same or less money, or rent cheaper. Combine this with the lame AppleTV (no surround sound? What is this, 1990?) and it should be obvious why iTunes isn't selling videos.
I think folks would consider renting videos, especially if they could do it from FrontRow or an AppleTV and begin watching soon after downloading commences. Making videos available in HD resolutions with real digital surround sound would help. TV shows should be much less expensive - maybe $5-10 per season - or perhaps they should be handled as rentals as well, with an entire season costing about as much as a movie rental.
I think folks would consider renting videos, especially if they could do it from FrontRow or an AppleTV and begin watching soon after downloading commences. Making videos available in HD resolutions with real digital surround sound would help. TV shows should be much less expensive - maybe $5-10 per season - or perhaps they should be handled as rentals as well, with an entire season costing about as much as a movie rental.
One more thing...
I forgot to mention this earlier; along with the increase in video quality needed before I would be a movie, I would also require surround sound. What's the point of having a decent surround system when you're listening to pro logic II from a stereo source? haha, that drives me nuts!
I forgot to mention this earlier; along with the increase in video quality needed before I would be a movie, I would also require surround sound. What's the point of having a decent surround system when you're listening to pro logic II from a stereo source? haha, that drives me nuts!
Apple should use Tivo as an example. I use my Tivo for weather and rental through Amazon. Apple needs to start doing the same offering OS X Widgets and iTunes rentals.
I buy some shows, but am hesitant since I end up with the DVD anyways - not into the whole DRM/No Physical Media thing... I like collecting shows on disc (and always have since LaserDisc).
DVD resolution: 720x480
iTunes video resolution: 640x480
They're not that different. What is different is the terrible encoding on iTunes videos. The current resolution would be OK (not that I'd mind HD resolution) if they could encode it so the video wasn't full of compression artifacts large enough to give children nightmares. MPEG4 is supposed to be the same quality in a smaller size than the MPEG2 used on DVDs. Which means they can be the same quality in smaller size. So why have the dropped down the quality so much that it's worse than a typical DVD?
iTunes video resolution: 640x480
They're not that different. What is different is the terrible encoding on iTunes videos. The current resolution would be OK (not that I'd mind HD resolution) if they could encode it so the video wasn't full of compression artifacts large enough to give children nightmares. MPEG4 is supposed to be the same quality in a smaller size than the MPEG2 used on DVDs. Which means they can be the same quality in smaller size. So why have the dropped down the quality so much that it's worse than a typical DVD?
Seeing that NBC has been wallowing in 4th place for the past several years, iTunes certainly hasn't done that good of a job making them popular then.
Yup. NBC has been in 4th place overall for a while now, but the shows that were originally promoted on iTunes ARE the best viewed shows on NBC.
I think one market that is often overlooked is people that don't have cable or satellite television. I don't mind paying the 1.99 price tag for television shows because the twenty or so dollars I spend a month on iTunes (I don't really watch that much) is far cheaper then the 100 dollars a month it costs to get all these shows for 'free' (and without the hassle of remembering when the are on ect. ect. ect.)