by Andre "DVDBack23" Yoskowitz
Apple has announced the addition of HD quality movies to its popular iTunes platform this week, giving users a chance to rent or purchase the movies in a much higher bitrate than current standard definition versions.
HD rentals were formerly only available to Apple TV owners but is now available to all Mac and PC users that have an iTunes account.
An new release HD movie rental will cost $4.99 and older catalog titles will cost $3.99 USD. The standard definition counterpart runs $1 cheaper. If you prefer to purchase the movie, the HD film will cost $19.99 USD, a discount from a physical Blu-ray film for the most part, but a steep premium from SD purchases.
Apple notes that over 250 million TV episodes have been purchased from the iTunes store along with 33 million movies.
Monday, March 23, 2009
SpiralFrog kicks the bucket
21 March 2009 11:25 by Andre "DVDBack23" Yoskowitz
In September of 2007, the advertisement supported free music download site SpiralFrog debuted with 700,000 songs available , including the entire Universal catalog. In June of 2008, the service added more music, this time from the EMI catalog, putting available tracks at over 2 million.
Today, that service has shut down, leaving all users who purchased any music with 60 days to play their DRM-crippled tunes before they disappear.
SpiralFrog was once dubbed a possible "iTunes Killer," but financial issues and an executive shakeup shook many consumer's confidence in the company.
At the time, the service was one of very few that allowed users to listen to music for free but since then much bigger companies have made similar services available, including MySpace, Last.fm from CBS and imeem. Also notably, the behemoth video sharing site YouTube shows music videos, for free, from three of the Big 4 labels.
The difference is of course, that SpiralFrog offered downloads whereas the other services offer streaming, but SpiralFrog downloads did not have iPod support so there is arguably no difference.
In September of 2007, the advertisement supported free music download site SpiralFrog debuted with 700,000 songs available , including the entire Universal catalog. In June of 2008, the service added more music, this time from the EMI catalog, putting available tracks at over 2 million.
Today, that service has shut down, leaving all users who purchased any music with 60 days to play their DRM-crippled tunes before they disappear.
SpiralFrog was once dubbed a possible "iTunes Killer," but financial issues and an executive shakeup shook many consumer's confidence in the company.
At the time, the service was one of very few that allowed users to listen to music for free but since then much bigger companies have made similar services available, including MySpace, Last.fm from CBS and imeem. Also notably, the behemoth video sharing site YouTube shows music videos, for free, from three of the Big 4 labels.
The difference is of course, that SpiralFrog offered downloads whereas the other services offer streaming, but SpiralFrog downloads did not have iPod support so there is arguably no difference.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Metallica To Play Secret South By Southwest Guitar Hero: Metallica Launch Show
Metallica will be playing a surprise show at Stubb's, Austin's legendary venue, on Friday, March 20 at 10 p.m. as part of the "Guitar Hero: Metallica" showcase at Texas capital's annual South By Southwest music festival.
Stadium headliner Metallica is going to play Stubb's, a venue that holds only 2,100 for the Guitar Hero: Metallica release party. Metallica's site says "There will be live music, a DJ, and of course the boys will be hangin' out . . . and who knows what else might happen!".
It will be a standard SXSW policy, with badges and wristbands getting priority. There will also be a line for those willing to pay cover, but admission will be based on space availability. But as Stubb's is an outdoor venue fans will be able to hear the band all the way to Hyde Park.
Starting Wednesday, March 18, there will be a three day "Metallica Madness" Guitar Hero tournament at the Best Buy store in South Austin, TX during the South by Southwest Music Festival.High scorers on each of the three days (one drummer and one guitarist plus a couple of runners up to make the "elite eight") will then move on to compete Friday night at a special Guitar Hero: Metallica release party at Stubb's, also in Austin, TX.
Source: Metallica Blog Magnetic
Stadium headliner Metallica is going to play Stubb's, a venue that holds only 2,100 for the Guitar Hero: Metallica release party. Metallica's site says "There will be live music, a DJ, and of course the boys will be hangin' out . . . and who knows what else might happen!".
It will be a standard SXSW policy, with badges and wristbands getting priority. There will also be a line for those willing to pay cover, but admission will be based on space availability. But as Stubb's is an outdoor venue fans will be able to hear the band all the way to Hyde Park.
Starting Wednesday, March 18, there will be a three day "Metallica Madness" Guitar Hero tournament at the Best Buy store in South Austin, TX during the South by Southwest Music Festival.High scorers on each of the three days (one drummer and one guitarist plus a couple of runners up to make the "elite eight") will then move on to compete Friday night at a special Guitar Hero: Metallica release party at Stubb's, also in Austin, TX.
Source: Metallica Blog Magnetic
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