Apple iTunes and Studios Begin Movie Rentals

Netflix announced that they were doing this a couple of days before Apple. Of course, they've been doing it for a few months now, but they're expanding their selection.

Maybe if my computer was hoked to my TV I'd do this the Netflix way, but my monitor is only 19" and that's no way to watch a movie.

Netflix rules. 2.99 per movie is a rip off compared to the unlimited rentals I get and 24 hr.s of instant viewing for only $14 per month. Apple is okay, but anything you pay for with Apple is paying for the brand. They will make $$$ off of this because they are Apple and apple is cool. People pay for cool. ME I know I’m not cool, I’ll stick with the better bargain NETFLIX RULES!
HOWEVER I get why Apple is doing this. Netflix is not available for macs. Even if you run windows and Internet explorer on your mac, you cannot view instantly. That sucks and does in fact disenfranchise many people who choose macs, over IBM format.

#2 If you have an XBOX 360 you can watch movies on your computer on your TV.

This seems like a better option than OnDemand.

Netflix, Apple - oh yeah, XBOX Live . . .

the future is here. We'll get pricing and delivery ironed out as the big companies battle for creating the standards.

almostunbiased, in the same way that so many HD TV / large screen TV owners dismiss my arguments about "who's going to pay for those huge tvs for this experience" . . .
those of us who have XBOX360's, laptops that are easily connected to TV's, the kind of large screen LCD's that have DVI connections for computers, or PC's designed to be home-made DVR's and/or movie copying machines (oops, did I list that?) can find your argument there easily dismissed .

Also, for college kids or people living on their own, their computer monitor is probably better resolution than their tv and when you sit only a few feet from the screen (or, like I tend to do sometimes, put your laptop on your chest as you lay back), the screen is plenty big.

I kept saying this is already here, and shaking my head at the people who just a couple weeks ago were saying how this was far off in the future or not necessarily going to happen.

I dunno if this will ENTIRELY do away with buying movies and such on physical media, but the market is just going to shrink more and more.

I am happy about this for one reason and one reason only. It make netflix step up with their service. My 17 hours of streaming video went to unlimited because of this and that makes me happy. Though they still have a ways to go to get some more variety up I expect netflix to really step it up with new video content.

I have pretty much been in the middle of an anime marathon since the night before it went live.

I love my Mac and iTunes. I spend so much of my day working on the damn thing (usually about 14 hours a day between work and writing) that it's nice to be able to take a break and watch a show or movie for a few minutes if I can't actually break away from it an get out of the house. I have a few of the refurbished Star Trek TOS and all of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip episodes downloaded from iTunes and they make nice "coffee breaks" during the day.

When will Apple get its act together and offer these things things in the UK?

We are still waiting for remastered TOS. The selection of TV shows is so lame. 16 shows mostly kiddies stuff with only 3 big names show (ugly betty, That 70s show and south park).
There is a nice selection of Sci Fi shows both old and new on US iTunes. Please get your UK licensing sorted and let me spend.

[EDIT] typo correction

To really buy into Apple's plan, you have to buy into the "Time Capsule" concept, a way of effortlessly backing up purchased copyrighted medium wirelessly. This is the idea that could replace having a physical medium such as a DVD for backup. I believe there is no doubt this is the future. The question is ... are you ready for it yet?

Open Note to Steve Jobs and Apple.

How about you fix the skipping song problems in the new Ipod Classic before you start doing all this other stuff. I`d like to have some sort of firmware update soon, because this thing is annoying as hell