Movies now available on iTunes Ireland store

aidan_walsh

As it says on the tin, movies are now available for sale and rent on the Irish iTunes Store.

Tom Dunne

That's excellent. In preparation for the iPad launch, I wonder?

Sad Professor

No HD though. Only for certain films and only for iPad and ATV.

Minto

That's great news, I'm delighted I won't have to buy from the US store anymore to get movies. Hopefully TV shows won't be too far behind.

Only problem I see is that now I may have to spring for a 64GB iPad and not settler for the 16GB I was going to get, lol!

philiporeilly

Sad Professor wrote: »

No HD though. Only for certain films and only for iPad and ATV.

According the the press HD versions will be available and they list pricing quoted from Apple.

http://www.siliconrepublic.com/news/article/16073/new-media/apple-launches-movies-on-itunes-in-ireland

Also where does it say you cant play the movies on any computer using iTunes or on a compatible iPod device?

Sad Professor

No. The Apple press release only mentions HD film rentals for 1 euro extra, but not to buy. €13.99 is for the SD versions. From what I can see, there are no HD films to buy on the store.

Beneath certain films it says "also available in HD on iPad and Apple TV". I assume this means you can only rent HD movies, and you ONLY watch them on ATV and iPad. So you can't buy HD films or even watch HD rentals on your computer. I think it's the same in the UK.

The studios are behind this.

banquo

Yes.

blubloblu

Is there DRM on purchases?

Sad Professor

blubloblu wrote: »

Is there DRM on purchases?

Of course.

banquo

Can't seem to rent on an iPod touch. Films are e13.99.

pmct

How do I download tv shows from American iTunes

Sad Professor

pmct wrote: »

How do I download tv shows from American iTunes

Get US iTunes vouchers from Ebay and create a US iTunes account.

pmct

How do I do that

blubloblu

Sad Professor wrote: »

Of course.

Ugh. Do they not get the message?

philiporeilly

Sad Professor wrote: »

................Beneath certain films it says "also available in HD on iPad and Apple TV"..

Also means in addition to watching them on any computer with iTunes. They are not limited just to iPad / Apple TV but you can ALSO purchase them on those devices. iPod devices may not have the specs to play HD video?

Gregor Samsa

banquo wrote: »

Can't seem to rent on an iPod touch. Films are e13.99.

On the iPhone (I assume the Touch is the same), you can rent some movies. Also, purchase price is dependent on the movie. Plenty are 9.99 or 7.99

The Terminator is showing up as 7.99 to buy and 0.99 to rent on the iPhone.

I think the prices and availability is the same as on the PC/Mac version of iTunes.

(Just be sure you're on a wi-fi connection if you're downloading on the iPhone or your monthly free data will soon be gone!)

Sad Professor

philiporeilly wrote: »

Also means in addition to watching them on any computer with iTunes. They are not limited just to iPad / Apple TV but you can ALSO purchase them on those devices.

Where are they then? I can't find any HD films to rent via iTunes.

Afaik Apple have limited HD movies to the iPad and ATV at the behest of the studios, because it's easier to control them that way. You can only buy/rent HD via iTunes on the US store.

aidan_walsh

blubloblu wrote: »

Ugh. Do they not get the message?

Well, you need the studios cooperation in order to do that. Apple by themselves can't do diddley or the studios will pull their content from the store.

aidan_walsh

At the moment it seems to be true that you can only get the movies in HD on AppleTV or iPad. Inglorious Bastards for example mentions this on the left hand side.

banquo

This is the best news ever. FINALLY a way for me to buy films digitally.

jimi_t2

banquo wrote: »

This is the best news ever. FINALLY a way for me to buy films digitally.

I love how pathetically greatful people are (and this is no attack on you banquo) that they are being granted the opportunity to pay over the odds for a poor selection of DRM crippled movies that we should have had two years ago. Oh, and unless you have an iPad you can't get HD movies. Best news ever I think not.

decsramble

There is a note at the bottom of the Apple FAQ on renting that says "You can only rent and view HD films with your iPad and Apple TV". That sucks for those of us with just iPhones and Macs, guess we bought the wrong Apple hardware

Dman001

Good news. I'm sure TV shows will shortly follow. Pity HD films can only be played on the Apple TV and iPad. Is it the same in the US because I was sure you could watch them on your Computer??

drunkmonkey

Can you rent. 99cent movie to watch on you iPhone and stream it to the telly some way?

Dman001

You could buy a TV Out cable for your iPhone, but they are pretty expensive.

Simon201

Dman001 wrote: »

Is it the same in the US because I was sure you could watch them on your Computer??

No it doesn't seem to be. I rented an HD film a few weeks ago from the US store and it played on my computer as well as output via HDMI into my telly. Although the output to televisions has been problematic due to I think equipment not being HDCP compliant.

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=8472731

Dman001

Yes I thought you could in the US alright. Must be something with the Rights they obtained that they can't give us that option here.

Uh it's annoying how you cant output the videos using a VGA cable.

banquo

Is paypal impossible from the Irish store?

Tom Dunne

jimi_t2 wrote: »

I love how pathetically greatful people are (and this is no attack on you banquo) that they are being granted the opportunity to pay over the odds for a poor selection of DRM crippled movies that we should have had two years ago. Oh, and unless you have an iPad you can't get HD movies. Best news ever I think not.

Aren't DVDs copy protected? Aren't Blue Ray movies copy protected? Don't we pay over the odds for them?:)

Also why should we have had these movies two years ago? Not trying to be provocative, I am genuinely intrigued.

bobbyrae

Finally movies on the irish store,very pricy though!I can't see many people paying 14euro when you can buy the DVD for 15!I also think apple will see how the moves sell before adding tv shows(which i would have much preferred and i think would have sold much more than movies because they are cheaper and better value).Hopefully they will add tv shows soon.

SV

Just bought my first movie there off it(body of lies) and have to say it's excellent quality even if not HD.

I'm delighted to finally be able to buy these movies and get them directly onto the iPod Touch anyway, regardless of how long Ireland had to wait for it.

what's the story with rentals? Watch them for a week or?

Sad Professor

SV wrote: »

what's the story with rentals? Watch them for a week or?

You have a month to start watching them. But once you start watching you must finish within 48 hours.

It's only 24 hours in the US store.

Creamy Goodness

nice to see it there.

won't be buying anything from it soon mind you, i prefer to buy the blu-ray/dvd as i do with my vinyl/cd's etc.

ussjtrunks

How many mb is each film? Plus what screen resolution are they.

Sad Professor

ussjtrunks wrote: »

How many mb is each film? Plus what screen resolution are they.

Size varies. Between 1GB and 2.5GB from what I can see. Thought I saw some 900MB as well.

I'm not too sure about the resolution. It should be DVD resolution, 640x480, but I was under the impression it was sometimes a bit less. This may not be the case anymore though.

ussjtrunks

Wow that's impressive I thought they were only going to use the iPhones 480x320 res + if a film was 2.5gb it would surely exceed the bitrate limit of the iPhone???

aidan_walsh

Hey, I wonder does this mean that iTunes Digital Copies supplied with DVDs/Blurays work now?

EDIT: Watchmen (purchased from Amazon) says no. Requires a UK Store account.

hallelujajordan

decsramble wrote: »

There is a note at the bottom of the Apple FAQ on renting that says "You can only rent and view HD films with your iPad and Apple TV". That sucks for those of us with just iPhones and Macs, guess we bought the wrong Apple hardware

Is an iphone capable of supporting HD ?

jimi_t2

Tom Dunne wrote: »

Aren't DVDs copy protected? Aren't Blue Ray movies copy protected? Don't we pay over the odds for them?:)

The protection has been cracked and its not technically illegal to do so. I refuse to buy Blu-Rays due to the disgusting cost and I usually get DVDs online for 2-5euro from CDWOW or Amazon or similar which I find perfectly reasonable. You can get 5 and 6 season box sets of older series' for like 20 euro (Complete seasons of Trailer Park Boys, Peep Show, Black Books, Arrested Development and Boston Legal I all got for less than 20 euro a piece).

Also why should we have had these movies two years ago? Not trying to be provocative, I am genuinely intrigued.

Because the Apple TV was released and content has been available in the US for over two years. The infastructure was there on both server and client side and it was soon enough after the bluray debacle so as that people knew which was content delivery systems were going.

Sure you can be a pedant and go on about local copyright and distribution rights, but the fact is that Studios themselves are fully implicated in both the creation and the enforcement of such acts. The studios can give out as much as they want about illegal downloading, but had this option been available two years ago (i.e. any commercially viable portal for legal purchase of digital video content) then we probably wouldn't be in a position where the precedent for CENSORSHIP of internet by ISPs in the Republic of Ireland has been set.

Tom Dunne

jimi_t2 wrote: »

The protection has been cracked and its not technically illegal to do so.

That fact is utterly irrelevant. You said:

jimi_t2 wrote: »

I love how pathetically greatful people are (and this is no attack on you banquo) that they are being granted the opportunity to pay over the odds for a poor selection of DRM crippled movies

And I said:

Aren't DVDs copy protected?

The fact of the matter is that we are already buying movies with copy protection on them, whether that is via iTunes or on shiny silver discs.

jimi_t2 wrote: »

I refuse to buy Blu-Rays due to the disgusting cost

So, again you agree with me that they are overpriced? Just like iTunes movies? Glad we are agreeing.

jimi_t2 wrote: »

Sure you can be a pedant and go on about local copyright and distribution rights, but the fact is that Studios themselves are fully implicated in both the creation and the enforcement of such acts. The studios can give out as much as they want about illegal downloading, but had this option been available two years ago (i.e. any commercially viable portal for legal purchase of digital video content) then we probably wouldn't be in a position where the precedent for CENSORSHIP of internet by ISPs in the Republic of Ireland has been set.

There's nothing pedantic about it. Studios and record labels are struggling with the internet. They don't know how to handle it. They see it as a threat, so they limit online sale of songs/movies. Ireland is a very small market in the global market, you can be sure we didn't factor into the equation when they allowed Apple to sell movies via iTunes.

jimi_t2

Tom Dunne wrote: »

That fact is utterly irrelevant

It's not, just a subtle distinction.

IIRC (and I'm open to correction here)

Bypassing the CRC check or whatever on DVD/Bluray is not illegal. Bypassing DRM on virtual media (i.e. a non-physical copy) is not.

So when I'm talking about DRM-crippled, I'm referring to that whole nonsense with HDCP compliancy and elaborate cloak and mirror systems that require authentication servers or what have you to check that its a legit copy when you upgrade system. Not bypassing the cursory region lock or decrypting physical media so you can backup.

There's nothing pedantic about it. Studios and record labels are struggling with the internet. They don't know how to handle it. They're too greedy to allow the lack of physical media and transportation costs change their antiquated pricing structures.

FYP

They see it as a threat, so they limit online sale of songs/movies.

They see Piracy as a threat. As they always have. Instigating ''copyright'' tax on blank media, and before that obstructing the progress of the digital audio market by effectively blackballing DAT for consumer use.

They see the internet as an unlimited source of free money however. The only reason they haven't cut-out the middleman has to do with having their pie and eating it (not to mention litigation > actually selling entertainment for the RIAA and moviehouses).

Fingleberries

Sad Professor wrote: »

You have a month to start watching them. But once you start watching you must finish within 48 hours.

It's only 24 hours in the US store.

In iTunes (on the PC) when you are browsing the movies, there is a link about "Learn More about Film Rentals", it says

Watch When You're Ready.
Once you click Rent, your film will begin to download immediately. You have 30 days to watch your film; decide where and when you want to watch it and have 48 hours to finish viewing the film from the time you click Play.

Rentals to Go
You can rent standard-definition films from iTunes and watch them with your Mac or Windows computer, iPhone, iPad or iPod (iPod touch, iPod nano - 3rd generation, or iPod classic), or on your TV using your Apple TV. Each device remembers where you stopped watching and picks up where you left off

It also links to a FAQ, and there seems to be some confusion in the FAQ, one part says

You have 30 days from the time of rental to watch your film and 48 hours after you've started viewing to finish it"

Another part says

You can delete the film prior to the expiration date if you want to make more space on your hard drive, iPhone, iPad, iPod or Apple TV. The film will automatically disappear from your iTunes library 24 hours after you've begun viewing it

Not sure which is true - but I've got District 9 downloaded to watch on the way home from work today and will find out then.

Sad Professor

48 hours is correct. The 24 is probably a left-over from the US store.

banquo

Sad Professor wrote: »

48 hours is correct. The 24 is probably a left-over from the US store.

+1. Can anyone explain why they're different for different regions?

Sad Professor

I dunno, but as Apple probably realised, 24 hours is very short. Too short to finish watching something the following night. I suspect they will change the US store rentals to 48 hours eventually, but that will undoubtedly require renegotiation with the US studios.

Nemanja91

aidan_walsh wrote: »

Hey, I wonder does this mean that iTunes Digital Copies supplied with DVDs/Blurays work now?

EDIT: Watchmen (purchased from Amazon) says no. Requires a UK Store account.

That was the exact same with me, although I bought my copy in HMV Cork, it's a ball and I doubt any other digital copies will work either, maybe since we now have the iTunes movie store they might start making the digital copies work in Ireland.

Eire Go Brach

Nemanja91 wrote: »

I doubt any other digital copies will work either, maybe since we now have the iTunes movie store they might start making the digital copies work in Ireland.

My Transformers 2 Digital copy worked. I have it a couple of months. I never even knew we had an issue with them here.

Its paramount pictures if that helps.

Geoff845

I think its just great, my Apple TV has come alive, dont have to go to Xtra Vision ever again...............

Eire Go Brach

Geoff845 wrote: »

I think its just great, my Apple TV has come alive, dont have to go to Xtra Vision ever again...............

Still a tad expensive. Xtra vision do great deals. But very worthwhile if you have the the Apple tv i'd say. For me I have no huge interest unless, I can watch it on my tv preferably in hd.

banquo

Might get the mammy an Apple TV now. She rents a LOT of films, and the telly only supports 720p. Would be great actually.

/continues secret plan to eventually migrate family to Apple

Tom Dunne

banquo wrote: »

/continues secret plan to eventually migrate family to Apple

Don't forget to show them this forum.

As a side note - is it just me, or is there a very limited selection available for rent?