Amazon Unbox

Boingboing has a very thorough post about all the restirictions Unbox puts on you and your use of the media you download from them.

A couple of the most disturbing issues are that if you don't update your software, they won't let you use the movies you've already purchashed. And, if you delete their software, your movies are gone as well. Forever.

It's amazing that anybody would pay so much for a movie that they won't truly own.

Check out the details of the Unbox user agreement broken down here: http://www.boingboing.net/2006/09/15/amazon_unbox_to_cust.html

I could not get this program to work anyway, every time I tried to open it I would get a message saying it encountered a problem and needed to shut down. Guess I will just stick with netflix

Very disappointed with Apple's offering. "Almost DVD quality." Sheesh. And nothing to stream wireless to TV until after the holidays? I'm betting Bezos will have a similar gadget -- or more likely, a partnership with Microsoft -- on the market for Christmas.

I'm not sure if this is appropriate to post a business comment here, but I am in the process of launching a video download site. It will be mainly for independent, niche and back catalogue/hard to find films, television shows, series, music videos, etc. They can be viewed on any platform - Mac, PC, and can be burned to DVD. (There is an invisible 'watermark' identifying the original registered downloader to inhibit piracy). We're thinking $9.95 for feature length, $4.95 for half hour shows, $2.95 for shorts. Any comments?

Even if it played on a Mac, thier prices don't come close to the deal Netflix gives me. I only purchase a few DVDs a year, but whether I rent from Netflix or purchase outright, the only way I'm interested in watching them is on my LCD TV. Not a chance I'm interested in watching movies on my Mac.

Check this out...

CNet reviewed Amazon's Unbox video service; it didn't do so well...


http://reviews.cnet.com/4531-10921_7-6636289.html?subj=blog&part=rss&tag=6636289

here is an email i sent to amazon after trying to download a movie.
being caught up in the excitement to download a movie from where i bought loads of dvd's in the past. only after i made the purchase did i realize that it was a windows based program when i was prompted to download the player...again, after the purchase! here's the emai and their reponse -


You don't support apple computers? or ipods? how can you
not support the number one personal video device that you sell? amazon sells all apple products. and can you please contact the news media regarding this issue, since they clearly state on news websites - "Seattle-based Amazon said the service will work on any Internet-connected personal computer." - not true!
can you please credit my account since i can't watch the movie on my
apple computer.

THE REPLY

Hello from Amazon.com.

Thank you for contacting us about the problem you encountered with The
Family Stone. As a standard policy, Amazon Unbox videos are not
returnable after they have been downloaded and viewed.

However, because of the circumstances I have made an exception and
issued a refund for $17.65. This refund should go through within the
next 2 to 3 business days and will appear as a credit on your next
credit card billing statement.

As part of the return/refund process, I have also revoked the license
for this video. It will no longer appear in Your Media Library and you
will be unable to play any copies you may have downloaded. We
recommend that you delete the inactive file from your computer.

Currently, the Windows XP operating system is required to run the
Amazon Unbox service. Because of this, Amazon Unbox is not supported
on the Apple Mac OS.

While it may be possible to run the Amazon Unbox video player on an
Apple computer running a required Windows operating system, we cannot
guarantee performance on those systems.

We value customers who experience our site and services through the
Apple Macintosh platform. We hope to be able to better serve you in
the future.

hmmmm

So it looked cool that they had Dr. Who, but... They only have the old series, not the 2005-2006 run; they charge per 25-minute episode, not per serial; and it's only a rental! $8 to *rent* one serial? No thank you.

#13, you're wrong. It won't run on PPC Macs (I doubt VPC is fast enough on all but perhaps the highest PMG5s).

This is STUPID! Here in town, our Movie Gallery (rental place) is selling hundreds of pre-played, guaranteed FOR LIFE DVDs for $5 a pop, and we're talking Wedding Crashers and a bunch of other newer movies.

Why on earth pay MORE for LESS? REDICULOUS. This is the only arena were I wish Apple would do a subscription service. Say $15 a month for unlimited, perhaps 2-3 "active" at a time downloads that are DVD quality and stay good for as long as you are subscribed or until you get another download.

If they go purchase, they need a burn-to-dvd option to REALLY succeed.

Same here, Clark. I suppose it's different for everyone, but personally, I only buy DVDs once or twice a year, if even that. If there's a movie I want to see, I'll very rarely watch it more than once after first getting it, and so Netflix has been excellent for all of my movie needs.

I really wonder how these rent-by-downloading services can expect to thrive with prices like these, when there are more benefits to watching movies from the real DVDs themselves, whether by owning or renting. Being able to download a movie and watch it right away sounds good in theory, but there are definitely a lot more details that need to be ironed out before it can truly become something revolutionary.