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Opinion

The Online Music and Movie Rental Myth

According to proponents of this myth, the real road to obscene profits in movies, music, software, and other digital media lies with online subscription rentals, not direct sales. They’re wrong, here’s why.

Think Secret reported yesterday they had “learned exclusively” of a surprise announcement at Apple’s WWDC: iTunes would begin renting movies.
Of course, they didn’t exclusively learn anything; if such an effort was really underway, a lot of involved people would also have to know about it! Perhaps they meant to say they were “exclusively reporting” the idea. Then again, by reporting it, it prevents it from being a WWDC surprise, so there are multiple problems with their story.
Despite that, there is a general perception among industry analysts that Apple, by showing up late to the subscription rental party, faces the threat of losing their majority ownership of online media sales. We’ll have to wait a few weeks to find out if Think Secret invented their rumor, or if it is based on any real information, but the underlying myth of the holy grail of media subscription rentals can be taken apart right now.
Read more…
Contributed by: Daniel Eran, RoughlyDrafted


Think Secret reported yesterday they had “learned exclusively” of a surprise announcement at Apple’s WWDC: iTunes would begin renting movies.
Of course, they didn’t exclusively learn anything; if such an effort was really underway, a lot of involved people would also have to know about it! Perhaps they meant to say they were “exclusively reporting” the idea. Then again, by reporting it, it prevents it from being a WWDC surprise, so there are multiple problems with their story.
Despite that, there is a general perception among industry analysts that Apple, by showing up late to the subscription rental party, faces the threat of losing their majority ownership of online media sales. We’ll have to wait a few weeks to find out if Think Secret invented their rumor, or if it is based on any real information, but the underlying myth of the holy grail of media subscription rentals can be taken apart right now.
Read more…
Contributed by: Daniel Eran, RoughlyDrafted

By Jason O'Grady

Founded the PowerPage in 1995.