Blockbuster Prepping Set-Top Movie Player and Merging Movelink into Blockbuster.com
By Alexander Grundner |
April 10th, 2008
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Unfortunately the details are sparse at this time, but Reuters reports that Blockbuster is getting set to launch a stand-alone set-top movie player, akin to Apple TV, in the next month that will stream/download video content via the Internet. No word on pricing or who the manufacturing partner(s) might be. Also revealed, is that the company’s recently acquired Movielink service will be integrated into Blockbuster.com by the second quarter of this year, which will allow subscribers to watch videos on their PCs.
UPDATE: I see that Dave Zatz’s thoughts about Blockbuster integrating its service into an existing set-top like Xbox 360, PS3, TiVo is getting a favorable response in contrast to Blockbuster’s supposed move to release a dedicated set-top for video downloads. On the face of it, I agree (the thought crossed my mind when I first read the news) – convenience is everything. However, I think what people are missing is that when a service provider ports their offering to a particular platform they have to pay the gatekeeper to license the use of the platform. What’s more, the licensee is limited on what they can offer (video format/quality and DRM-wise) due to the limitations of the machine(s) they’re working with. So, in reality, Blockbuster might be thinking it’s a better move to create their own update-able box they have full control over, similar to VUDU. Personally, I wouldn’t have a problem paying an extra buck or two a month on top of my existing plan for “renting” a dedicated set-top box, like many of us already do from our cable and satellite providers, that offered X number or unlimited number of downloads a month. With that said, though, I’d never pay Blockbuster for the privilege of owning such a device (but perhaps others would… I don’t know).
Android – 1 day 11 hours ago