Amazon Unbox
Like all things related to movies and TV, it looks shiny on the outside, but has the MPAA's dirty claws in its underbelly.
Initially my question was on cost.
For some programs, $1.99 is cheap per episode (it would make a "normal" DVD around $8-10 depending on the num of episodes). However, the season DVD sets are cheaper. For instance, SG-1 DVD sets are between $30 and $35 per season. With a season being 20 episodes, the net result is $40, which is a $5 premium for not having the hoard of extras that generally comes with DVDs today (or ownership, see below).
I know I asked the same question when iTunes came out (and when liquid audio did it "first" a long time ago), but the audio argument addresses the issue of an album only having a handful of good tracks, so why not purchase those and not have to "buy" the rest of the CD? You could say the same for some shows (like the X-Files, where you only wanted to download the arc episodes and not the "creature feature" episodes as an example), but in the case of some of the more complex shows with useful commentary, you would be missing out.
I do think that the removal of the lag in production is a very good thing (tm) because it would allow distribution of shows shortly after that season is in the can and fully aired to those rabid fans that would be the heavy users of the service to begin with.
I'm also curious to see if this will have any effect on the torrenting of shows, though I don't imagine it would since a show torrent is either up during the season it aired, or is a DVD rip, so no change in source really.
User-side costs aside, the real insidiousness is in the Terms of Service:
First off, you aren't purchasing anything, you are renting. They call it a purchase, but you are purchasing a "viewing license" of that content and downloading bits that are unwatchable other than through their service. If you remove the viewing software, the bits go away that you supposedly "purchased."
3. Unbox Video Player
c. Removal of Software. If you uninstall or otherwise remove the Software, your ability to view all Digital Content you have downloaded to the Authorized Device will immediately and automatically terminate and we reserve the right to delete all Digital Content from that Authorized Device without notice to you.
4. License To Digital Content Downloads
The Service allows you to (i) pay a fee to view Digital Content for a limited specified period of time ("Rental Digital Content"), and (ii) pay a fee to view Digital Content a repeated number of times ("Purchased Digital Content").
d. General Restrictions. You may not transfer, copy or display the Digital Content except as permitted in this Agreement. In addition, you may not:
i. i. Sell, rent, lease, distribute, broadcast, sublicense or otherwise assign any right to the Digital Content to any third party;
6. Reservation of Rights
Except for the rights explicitly granted to you in this Agreement, all right, title and interest in the Service and Digital Content are reserved and retained by Amazon and its licensors, and Amazon and its licensors do not transfer any right, title or interest in the Digital Content to you. You do not acquire any ownership rights in the Digital Content as a result of downloading Digital Content.
Calling these transactions purchases is fraud. Section 3(c) and 4(d)i clearly show this to be a temporary non-transfer of content covered by any fair use. This mixed with the ability for them to delete your Media Library if you uninstall the software, you aren't even purchasing the bits themselves. This is the dream and the stated goals of the MPAA. The viewer never owns anything. It removes what they see as the loophole in fair use, owning the media and the means to view it.
If you are going to not give me control of content that I "purchase", then give me a subscription for video on demand to any device that I have a key for. Then you give me n credits a month based on a sliding rate, where I can view content of any sort anywhere I want. Y'know, like Netflix or Greencine does for media itself. Greencine has VOD and d/l DivX movies (the latter you can burn and play on a DivX supported DVD player).
I had been using amazon less and less over the years, but if Bezos has become the MPAA's patsy, they aren't getting any more of my money (there are other choices to be had). I know that Valenti is gone from the seat as chief lobbyist, but the money hungry power brokers that make up the membership of the MPAA are still thriving.
Also, utilizing a Windows-only solution (PlayForSure) seems to be Amazon's method of staying out of the media landwar that is going to start between Apple and Microsoft when Microsoft loses patience with the handheld market to step up and go after the iPod (iRiver was the closest, but lost all momentum, going into a holding pattern that the rest of the manufacturers are).
Initially my question was on cost.
For some programs, $1.99 is cheap per episode (it would make a "normal" DVD around $8-10 depending on the num of episodes). However, the season DVD sets are cheaper. For instance, SG-1 DVD sets are between $30 and $35 per season. With a season being 20 episodes, the net result is $40, which is a $5 premium for not having the hoard of extras that generally comes with DVDs today (or ownership, see below).
I know I asked the same question when iTunes came out (and when liquid audio did it "first" a long time ago), but the audio argument addresses the issue of an album only having a handful of good tracks, so why not purchase those and not have to "buy" the rest of the CD? You could say the same for some shows (like the X-Files, where you only wanted to download the arc episodes and not the "creature feature" episodes as an example), but in the case of some of the more complex shows with useful commentary, you would be missing out.
I do think that the removal of the lag in production is a very good thing (tm) because it would allow distribution of shows shortly after that season is in the can and fully aired to those rabid fans that would be the heavy users of the service to begin with.
I'm also curious to see if this will have any effect on the torrenting of shows, though I don't imagine it would since a show torrent is either up during the season it aired, or is a DVD rip, so no change in source really.
User-side costs aside, the real insidiousness is in the Terms of Service:
First off, you aren't purchasing anything, you are renting. They call it a purchase, but you are purchasing a "viewing license" of that content and downloading bits that are unwatchable other than through their service. If you remove the viewing software, the bits go away that you supposedly "purchased."
3. Unbox Video Player
c. Removal of Software. If you uninstall or otherwise remove the Software, your ability to view all Digital Content you have downloaded to the Authorized Device will immediately and automatically terminate and we reserve the right to delete all Digital Content from that Authorized Device without notice to you.
4. License To Digital Content Downloads
The Service allows you to (i) pay a fee to view Digital Content for a limited specified period of time ("Rental Digital Content"), and (ii) pay a fee to view Digital Content a repeated number of times ("Purchased Digital Content").
d. General Restrictions. You may not transfer, copy or display the Digital Content except as permitted in this Agreement. In addition, you may not:
i. i. Sell, rent, lease, distribute, broadcast, sublicense or otherwise assign any right to the Digital Content to any third party;
6. Reservation of Rights
Except for the rights explicitly granted to you in this Agreement, all right, title and interest in the Service and Digital Content are reserved and retained by Amazon and its licensors, and Amazon and its licensors do not transfer any right, title or interest in the Digital Content to you. You do not acquire any ownership rights in the Digital Content as a result of downloading Digital Content.
Calling these transactions purchases is fraud. Section 3(c) and 4(d)i clearly show this to be a temporary non-transfer of content covered by any fair use. This mixed with the ability for them to delete your Media Library if you uninstall the software, you aren't even purchasing the bits themselves. This is the dream and the stated goals of the MPAA. The viewer never owns anything. It removes what they see as the loophole in fair use, owning the media and the means to view it.
If you are going to not give me control of content that I "purchase", then give me a subscription for video on demand to any device that I have a key for. Then you give me n credits a month based on a sliding rate, where I can view content of any sort anywhere I want. Y'know, like Netflix or Greencine does for media itself. Greencine has VOD and d/l DivX movies (the latter you can burn and play on a DivX supported DVD player).
I had been using amazon less and less over the years, but if Bezos has become the MPAA's patsy, they aren't getting any more of my money (there are other choices to be had). I know that Valenti is gone from the seat as chief lobbyist, but the money hungry power brokers that make up the membership of the MPAA are still thriving.
Also, utilizing a Windows-only solution (PlayForSure) seems to be Amazon's method of staying out of the media landwar that is going to start between Apple and Microsoft when Microsoft loses patience with the handheld market to step up and go after the iPod (iRiver was the closest, but lost all momentum, going into a holding pattern that the rest of the manufacturers are).