[/caption]Who was it that said may you live in interesting times – because such times are already here, at least in technology.
Bloomberg is reporting that a group made up of Hollywood studios, cable companies, and tech companies are working together to offer the public access to an online library to store and retrieve movies.
This venture is called “UltraViolet”, and the public’s access would come through smart phones, tablets, web- connected televisions, PCs, and video consoles.
The group giving us UltraViolet is based in Los Angeles, and it said way back in 2008 that it planned to offer consumers the choice of paying a single bill for access to its entertainment library of TV shoes and movies.
There are some 58 corporations working in tandem to bring UltraViolet to fruition – some of these companies include NBC, Comcast, Lion Gates, Universal, Sony Pictures, and Microsoft. From the list, one can see that this entertainment endeavor has many of the major players in various industries involved to provide this unique smorgasbord of treats.
This UltraViolet venture could be very profitable, and as such, there are competitors ready to launch their respective similar platforms. Among the entertainment companies competing with UltraViolet will be Walt Disney, which is developing a similar platform called “Keychest”, which would let viewers have access to its movies and TV shows using a number of devices. Disney has said the technology will be available by the end of the year.
We all know that Apple would be an integral part of this entertainment mix, especially for a tech company that has a reputation for being on the cutting edge. Lest we forget that Apple owns the proprietary digital-rights and software, which let consumers share iTunes content across all of its products: Macs, iPads, iPhones and iPod touches.
The companies that license the UltraViolet platform would compete to manage consumers’ online libraries, akin to the competition we already have among cable and telephone companies.
Mitch Singer, president of Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem LLC, said in an interview, “that some service providers may deliver the service as part of monthly subscription plans or offer it free to keep customers from switching to rivals….”
What does this do for the movie theatres? Will consumers be able to access new movies without making the trip to the theatres, avoiding the inconvenience and the hefty prices they have to pay for snacks?
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