Apple Premieres iTunes Movie Rentals With All Major Film Studios
New Apple TV Software Lets You Rent Movies Directly from Your Widescreen TV
MACWORLD SAN FRANCISCO–January 15, 2008–Apple today announced iTunes
Movie Rentals featuring movies from all the major movie studios including
20th Century Fox, The Walt Disney Studios, Warner Bros., Paramount,
Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Sony Pictures Entertainment,
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Lionsgate and New Line Cinema. Users can rent
movies for as low as $2.99 and watch them on their Macs or PCs, all current
generation iPods*, iPhone and Apple TV. iTunes Movie Rentals launches today
and will offer over 1,000 titles by the end of February, including over 100
titles in stunning high definition video with 5.1 Dolby Digital surround
sound which users can rent directly from their widescreen TV using Apple
TV. iTunes Movie Rentals are priced at $2.99 for library titles and $3.99
for new releases, and high definition versions are just one dollar more
with library titles at $3.99 and new releases at $4.99.
“iTunes Movie Rentals instantly brings great movies from all the major
studios directly to your iPod, iPhone, TV or computer–without having to
drive to the video store or wait for DVDs to arrive in the mail,” said
Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Movie lovers can now discover and enjoy movies as
simply and easily as music lovers discover and enjoy music today on iTunes.”
“Apple has created an incredibly easy and innovative way to rent and enjoy
movies,” said Jim Gianopulos, chairman and chief executive officer of Fox
Filmed Entertainment. “Millions of movie lovers will be able to watch
wonderful movies from Fox and the other major studios whenever and wherever
they want, be it on their computer, TV, iPod or iPhone.”
iTunes Movie Rentals feature iTunes’ legendary ease of use, which makes
discovering and enjoying movie rentals as simple and easy as buying music
on iTunes has always been. Once a movie is rented, it starts downloading
from the iTunes Store directly to iTunes or Apple TV, and users with a fast
Internet connection can start viewing the movie in seconds. Customers have
up to 30 days to start watching it, and once a movie has been started
customers have 24 hours to finish it–or watch it multiple times.
The all new Apple TV software delivers an entirely new user experience
centered around iTunes Movie Rentals, allowing movie fans to rent and watch
movies right from their widescreen TV, with no computer required. Users can
also view photos from their computers, Flickr and .Mac Web Galleries on
their widescreen TV as slideshows or screen savers, and anytime photos are
updated on Flickr or .Mac they are automatically updated on Apple TV. Apple
TV users can now browse and enjoy the iTunes Store podcast directory of
over 125,000 video and audio podcasts, view over 50 million originally
created videos from YouTube, or choose from a selection of six million
songs, over 600 TV shows and 10,000 music videos to purchase directly from
their Apple TV. Purchases downloaded to Apple TV are automatically synced
back to iTunes on the user’s computer for enjoyment on their computer, iPod
or iPhone.
Apple TV easily connects to a broad range of widescreen TVs and home
theater systems and comes standard with HDMI, component video, analog and
optical audio ports. Using high-speed AirPort 802.11 wireless networking,
Apple TV now automatically plays all of your iTunes content without setup
or management**.
Pricing & Availability
Movie rentals from the iTunes Store for Mac or Windows require iTunes 7.6,
available as a free download immediately from www.itunes.com. iTunes Movie
Rentals require a valid credit card with a billing address in the country
of purchase. iTunes Movie Rentals are available in the US only and are
$2.99 (US) for library titles and $3.99 (US) for new releases, and high
definition versions are priced just one dollar more with library titles at
$3.99 (US) and new releases at $4.99 (US).
The new Apple TV software will be available as a free automatic download to
all Apple TV customers later this month. Apple TV, which includes the Apple
Remote, is available from the Apple Store (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail
stores and Apple Authorized Resellers for a suggested retail price $229
(US) for the 40GB model, and for $329 for the 160GB model. Apple TV
requires an 802.11g/n wireless network or 10/100 Base-T Ethernet
networking, a broadband Internet connection and a high definition
widescreen TV. iPod games will not play on Apple TV.
*Movie rentals work on iPod classic, iPod nano with video and iPod touch.
**Compatible with 802.11b/g/n. Based on an IEEE 802.11n draft
specification. Wireless video streaming requires an 802.11g/n network.
Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple
II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh.
Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its
award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional
applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with
its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has
entered the mobile phone market with its revolutionary iPhone.
