Bloomberg reports that Warner Brothers, Paramount, Walt Disney Co., Lions Gate Entertainment Corp, and Fox will begin renting movies through Apple's iTunes Store in an announcement scheduled for January 15th at Macworld.
Bloomberg states that both new releases and older titles will rent for $3.99 for 24 hours, consistent with recent rumors. Fox was the first studio to have signed onto the iTunes rental deal.
Steve Jobs is expected to make these announcements at his keynote address at Macworld San Francisco 2008. MacRumors.com will provide live keynote coverage with web, sms, and iPhone-compatible updates.
http://www.macrumors.com/2008/01/09/warner-paramount-disney-fox-lions-gate-to-join-itunes-rentals/
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Jan. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc., maker of the top-selling iPod media player, will let iTunes users rent movies as well as buy them and will add Warner Bros. and Fox as suppliers, according to people familiar with the agreements.
Joining Warner Bros. and News Corp.'s Fox in supplying rental films are Viacom Inc.'s Paramount, Walt Disney Co. and Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., said two people who asked not to be identified because the plans aren't public. The studios already sell movies through iTunes for at least $9.99 each.
Apple will announce the rental service Jan. 15, the people said. New releases and older titles will rent for $3.99 for 24 hours. The lower-priced rentals and additional titles may help boost the popularity of Apple's iPod media players, iPhone and Apple TV set-top box, which delivers shows to widescreen TV sets.
``Once a couple of studios do it, how long can the others resist?'' Richard Greenfield, a Pali Capital analyst, said in an interview. ``It becomes only a matter of minutes before the others come on board too.''
Apple rose $8.15, or 4.8 percent, to $179.40 at 4 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The shares have almost doubled in the past year.
News Corp.
Apple may also add News Corp.'s Fox as a supplier of movie downloads, the Financial Times reported Dec. 26. ITunes offers about 500 films for sale from studios including Metro-Goldwyn- Mayer Inc.
Cupertino, California-based Apple declined to comment, said spokeswoman Natalie Kerris. Disney spokeswoman Kim Harbin declined to comment, as did Shaleek Wilson, a spokeswoman for Viacom Inc.'s Paramount, News Corp.'s Julie Henderson and Lions Gate spokeswoman Sarah Greenberg. Warner Bros. spokesman Jim Noonan didn't return messages.
``This will be a huge step forward'' for Apple, Matthew Kelmon, president of Palo Alto, California-based Kelmoore Investment Co., said today in an interview on Bloomberg Radio. ``It's a great strategy. Content is king. It's the only thing missing.''
Separately, Apple will cut the price of music downloads from its U.K. iTunes music store to settle a European Union antitrust case. U.K. consumers will pay the same for downloads from iTunes as customers in the 15 countries using the euro, the European Commission said in a faxed statement today.
The commission, which said Apple's prices are 10 percent higher in the U.K., said it will close the probe.
Apple may also announce support for Sony Corp.'s Blu-Ray high-definition DVD drives when Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs delivers the keynote speech at the Macworld conference in San Francisco on Jan. 15, American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu said.
Jobs may also use his speech to announce an update to Apple TV, which transmits content from a Mac or PC for viewing on widescreen TVs, Bear Stearns & Co. analyst Andrew Neff said in an interview.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=asfuyhaPNAGc&refer=home
Bloomberg states that both new releases and older titles will rent for $3.99 for 24 hours, consistent with recent rumors. Fox was the first studio to have signed onto the iTunes rental deal.
Steve Jobs is expected to make these announcements at his keynote address at Macworld San Francisco 2008. MacRumors.com will provide live keynote coverage with web, sms, and iPhone-compatible updates.
http://www.macrumors.com/2008/01/09/warner-paramount-disney-fox-lions-gate-to-join-itunes-rentals/
____________
Apple to Allow ITunes Users to Rent Films, People Say (Update5)
Jan. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc., maker of the top-selling iPod media player, will let iTunes users rent movies as well as buy them and will add Warner Bros. and Fox as suppliers, according to people familiar with the agreements.
Joining Warner Bros. and News Corp.'s Fox in supplying rental films are Viacom Inc.'s Paramount, Walt Disney Co. and Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., said two people who asked not to be identified because the plans aren't public. The studios already sell movies through iTunes for at least $9.99 each.
Apple will announce the rental service Jan. 15, the people said. New releases and older titles will rent for $3.99 for 24 hours. The lower-priced rentals and additional titles may help boost the popularity of Apple's iPod media players, iPhone and Apple TV set-top box, which delivers shows to widescreen TV sets.
``Once a couple of studios do it, how long can the others resist?'' Richard Greenfield, a Pali Capital analyst, said in an interview. ``It becomes only a matter of minutes before the others come on board too.''
Apple rose $8.15, or 4.8 percent, to $179.40 at 4 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The shares have almost doubled in the past year.
News Corp.
Apple may also add News Corp.'s Fox as a supplier of movie downloads, the Financial Times reported Dec. 26. ITunes offers about 500 films for sale from studios including Metro-Goldwyn- Mayer Inc.
Cupertino, California-based Apple declined to comment, said spokeswoman Natalie Kerris. Disney spokeswoman Kim Harbin declined to comment, as did Shaleek Wilson, a spokeswoman for Viacom Inc.'s Paramount, News Corp.'s Julie Henderson and Lions Gate spokeswoman Sarah Greenberg. Warner Bros. spokesman Jim Noonan didn't return messages.
``This will be a huge step forward'' for Apple, Matthew Kelmon, president of Palo Alto, California-based Kelmoore Investment Co., said today in an interview on Bloomberg Radio. ``It's a great strategy. Content is king. It's the only thing missing.''
Separately, Apple will cut the price of music downloads from its U.K. iTunes music store to settle a European Union antitrust case. U.K. consumers will pay the same for downloads from iTunes as customers in the 15 countries using the euro, the European Commission said in a faxed statement today.
The commission, which said Apple's prices are 10 percent higher in the U.K., said it will close the probe.
Apple may also announce support for Sony Corp.'s Blu-Ray high-definition DVD drives when Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs delivers the keynote speech at the Macworld conference in San Francisco on Jan. 15, American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu said.
Jobs may also use his speech to announce an update to Apple TV, which transmits content from a Mac or PC for viewing on widescreen TVs, Bear Stearns & Co. analyst Andrew Neff said in an interview.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=asfuyhaPNAGc&refer=home
