wie vor ein paar Wochen gerumort, ist es jetzt officiell: man kann jetzt Filme ausleihen (harte Zeiten für die anderen Verleiher stehen bevor..denn auch wenn das Geld knapp ist, geht ein movie & Poppcorn, speziell zu Hause bei dolby immer..)
Apple to Allow ITunes Users to Rent Films, People Say
Apple Inc., expanding its reach in consumer entertainment, will let iTunes users rent movies as well as buy them and add Fox and Warner Bros. as suppliers, according to people familiar with the agreements.
Joining News Corp.'s Fox and Warner Bros. in supplying rental films are Viacom Inc.'s Paramount, Walt Disney Co. and Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., which already sell movies through iTunes for at least $9.99 each, said two people who asked not to be identified because the plans aren't public.
Apple will announce the rental service Jan. 15, the people said. New releases and older titles will rent for $3.99 for 24 hours. The lower-priced rentals and additional titles may help boost the popularity of Apple's iPod media players, iPhone and Apple TV set-top box, which delivers shows to widescreen TV sets.
``Once a couple of studios do it, how long can the others resist?'' Pali Capital analyst Richard Greenfield said in an interview. ``It becomes only a matter of minutes before the others come on board too.''
Apple rose $2.60, or 1.5 percent, to $173.85 in German trading as of 10:52 a.m. in Frankfurt. The stock lost 3.6 percent to $171.25 yesterday in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The shares have doubled in the past 12 months.
News Corp.
Apple may also add News Corp.'s Fox as a supplier of movie downloads, the Financial Times reported Dec. 26. ITunes offers about 500 films for sale from studios including Metro-Goldwyn- Mayer Inc.
Cupertino, California-based Apple declined to comment, said spokeswoman Natalie Kerris. Disney spokeswoman Kim Harbin declined to comment, as did Shaleek Wilson, a spokeswoman for Viacom Inc.'s Paramount, News Corp.'s Julie Henderson and Lions Gate spokeswoman Sarah Greenberg. Warner Bros. spokesman Jim Noonan didn't return messages.
Apple may also announce support for Sony Corp.'s Blu-Ray high-definition DVD drives when Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs delivers the keynote speech at the Macworld conference in San Francisco on Jan. 15, American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu said.
Jobs may also use his speech to announce an update to Apple TV, which transmits content from a Mac or PC for viewing on widescreen TVs, Bear Stearns & Co. analyst Andrew Neff said in an interview.
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