NBC To Offer On-Demand Movies Via P2P

RX8 writes "NBC Universal has signed a deal with Wurld Media to make some of their movies available for download via a secure P2P network in 2006. There hasn't been a price released yet, but the movies include what you would get on their existing video-on-demand and pay services plus around 100 older movie titles. Once the material is downloaded, users can only view it for up to 24 hours before it expires."

Comments

24 hours?

[Spy der Mann]

Nothing for you to see here. Please move along.

Oh no, my Slashdot P2P trial has expired! :( HELP!!!!

Re:24 hours?

[im_mac]

Users will be able to view the material for 24 hours once they begin playback on their computers; once downloaded, the material will be stored on the user's computer for 30 days to act as a resource in the Peer Impact network

Let me get this straight. I can only watch it for 24 hours but it'll remain on my harddrive for 30 days, 29 of which it is inaccessible to me? Sounds like I should be charging NBC a rental fee.

Movies available on P2P

[mrtroy]

NBC...I have a phone call for you.

The year 2000 is calling, and wants its idea back.

Re:Movies available on P2P

[paranode]

No kidding. I don't think these execs really get it. P2P got huge because the downloaders were getting stuff for free. I mean it's good that they are tapping the resource and at least attempting to do something 'modern', but if I'm going to pay money I want real on-demand... not getting on their P2P network and waiting to download the whole thing from peers. I guess you might be able to get it faster than a subscription service like Netflix (considering mail time), but then again you don't have a DVD, you have a video file which you have to play on a computer (or output to your TV if you have that setup).

Plus the 24 hour thing. What if I can't watch it right away? I would be mad if it expired after 24 hours. I hate DRM but if they are going to use it they should at least protect it in such a way that you can wait to view it or even watch it multiple times on the same computer.

Re:Movies available on P2P

[Prophet of Nixon]

If the file expires in 24 hours, what incentive is there for peers to hold the expired file and seed it? This sounds dumb.

Note to MPAA and RIAA

[Anonymous Coward]

If it expires, I won't be buying it.

Entertainment is to be done at my leisure. I choose the terms, not you.

Simple as that.

Standard Codec ? DRM ?

[Yoshy]

The 24 hours part is bad news, not because I'd like to keep the movies but because it means that it will only available to Windows.

fair is fair

[Scrameustache]

Once the material is downloaded, users can only view it for up to 24 hours before it expires.

And they can only spend my money for 24h before the payment expires, ok?

Explodes. - No, expires.

[Ceriel Nosforit]

"...users can only view it for up to 24 hours before it expires."

I was expecting to read "explodes" rather than "expires". I'm glad I was wrong.

But now I worry that by posting this I might give them ideas.

Why Movies? Do TV.

[xstonedogx]

Why not their television programming?

If they posted the programming with advertisements intact, eventually they may be able to ask more for advertising, or treat it as a separate advertising space altogether. Plus, the torrents for their shows are going to be out there anyway. This way there is an official torrent that most people are going to want because: they can expect a certain level of quality and there is no risk to them. AND it also increases awareness and availability of their show.

Heck, if they did this I might even watch some of their shows.

Re:Surprise - Too Little, Too Late

[MoralHazard]

You think that the only killer feature of P2P networks is free content? My friend, you miss something, I think.

True P2P networks offer tremendous bandwidth efficiency for the distributors of content, which is especially important when you're delivering large content (like, say movies and other media). Think of how quickly Bittorrent downloads of Linux distros took off--it made it so much easier for gazillions of people to get a brand-new release at the same time. No more waiting a week for the Debian FTP servers to be pingable again.

Plus, the distributor saves money on bandwidth charges, since many of the users will get the content from each other instead of the central servers. Whether this in turn increases the costs of the users remains to be seen, but it probably won't affect their connectivity bills much more than using open P2P networks to get stuff on their own.

When does the clock start ticking?

[Morgalyn]

24 hours? Is that from the point of purchase, or the point of completed download? Because if the movie is of a quality worth paying for, that's a significant difference for a lot of users.

Besides, that's an awfully short period of usage. Why would anyone do that versus renting the movie? It would have to be very cheap. What about the ability to pause the movie, or watch it more than once? Is this going to be like those failed one-viewing DVDs that came out a while ago?

Dear NBC,

[ewhac]

I am willing to pay exactly $0.00 for this "service" you're planning on offering. Copy protection is a form of product defect, and I do not purchase products I know to be defective. You may wish to confer with Sony on this issue.

On the other hand, if you are willing to offer movies and programs in an unencumbered format (DiVX, MPEG, QuickTime, Ogg Theora, whatever) with no usage restrictions, and no special download clients required, then I'd be very willing to consider as much as $3.00 per show/program downloaded. I'd especially be interested in the old NBC Mystery Movies from the 1970's, including McCloud, Columbo, and McMillan and Wife.

Please correct your offerings accordingly.

Schwab