Filed under: Video
Walmart offers innovative movie download option
Soon, when you go to Walmart and buy a (physical) DVD, you'll be greeted with a new option. For $1.97 more, you can download a digital version of that movie compatible with portable devices. For $2.97, you can buy a higher quality version, suitable for PCs. Or you can get both add-ons for $3.97.
Of course, a lot of you right now are going "You are so farking kidding me, right? Buy a DVD and then buy a digital download on top of that?" Yes, I know, I know. Handbrake, yaddi yaddi yaddi.
Remember that recent Library of Congress/Copyright Office ruling? For two bucks, you can put your movie on a portable player and not worry about breaking CSS.
The first DVD to offer this feature will be Superman Returns. The DVD will ship with a "video download feature sticker" on the cover. After purchase, customers will have to log onto walmart.com/superman and then go through some registration and (I suppose) affidavit rigmarole before downloading the digital version.
At this time, it's unclear what the download format will be (the smart money is on MPEG-4) and whether it will play on iPods.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Steven said 5:17PM on 11-28-2006
Screw that. I'll just continue to rip them myself.
I bought it, it's mine, and I don't need some high powered lawyers to decide that for me.
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nate Rose said 5:16PM on 11-28-2006
Got this from their site:
What is the Portable format?
The Portable format is optimized for on-the-go viewing using "PlayForSure" portable video players. If played on a PC, the image quality will not be as good as the higher resolution Standard format. These videos are not compatible with Apple iPods. Portable format videos are encoded at a 320 x 240 resolution with an average bit rate of 500 kbps.
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Matthew said 5:19PM on 11-28-2006
Wonder how Wal-Mart will handle the download portion of the transaction when a customer returns the physical CD.
I assume the DL code must be inside the DVD package, which makes it unreturnable.
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Jon said 7:14PM on 11-28-2006
It's stupid to make them incompatible with iPods because that is precisely the device that most people will be ripping them for.
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KeynoteKen said 9:31PM on 11-28-2006
Heh, Plays For Sure...you mean that trash Microsoft threw out yesterday??
But, if anyone has the power to keep PlaysForSure active, it's WalMart. I wonder if the Creative's of the world will line up behind the WalMart store?
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Adam Welling said 10:58PM on 11-28-2006
PlaysForSure, eh? So does this mean it won't work on the Zune either, or is it using their new DRM scheme? How utterly pointless... Not that I'm saying it would be a big boon if it DID play on the Zune, just thinking of the very small market share they are targetting with this.
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Ed said 7:24PM on 11-28-2006
It'll be WMV, almost certainly. Its not going to play on iPods, because they'd need FairPlay for that.
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Mephistophelian said 8:11PM on 11-28-2006
So let me get this straight. You buy a DVD and for an extra $2.97 you can then get a digital copy that you can play on your computer.
Why not just stick the DVD in the drive and play?
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Sean Hayford O'Leary said 8:32PM on 11-28-2006
This is surrenduring to what the corporations want. Buying three copies of the same content is ridiculous and something we as consumers will not and should not tolerate. We don't buy cars three times and haul themem all around with us in case we should need Sony fuel instead of Time Warner fuel and, likewise, we shouldn't degrade ourselves to buying a movie three times -- regardless of the discount.
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Jon said 8:16PM on 11-28-2006
"Why not just stick the DVD in the drive and play?"
They probably added some protection that stops them playing on computers, much like they do with certain CDs.
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Sean Hayford O'Leary said 8:46PM on 11-28-2006
This is surrenduring to what the corporations want. Buying three copies of the same content is ridiculous and something we as consumers will not and should not tolerate.
Perhaps next General Motors should decide that Pontiacs are only licensed for highway driving, Chevys for urban driving, and Buicks for rural driving. Then make it illegal to use any of the three for the two purposes for which it wasn't licensed.
We of course would never buy all three cars, because it's the violation of the rights we should be able to expect as customers -- discount or not.
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Dave Edmonds said 8:50PM on 11-28-2006
Number 9 hit just about everything I could think of. One thing did come to mind although. So if you are crazy enough to pay again for something you already own and then for what ever reason you have a download issue, are you going to have to speak to a Wal Mart drone? What a nightmare
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Sean Hayford O'Leary said 9:11PM on 11-28-2006
Uggh. Double commenting. I like what I said in #10 better, but take your pick, guys. ;-)
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