Samsung To Offer Full Movie Downloads In UK, But Will Consumers Bite?
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Samsung has launched a full-length movie download store that will allow consumers to purchase movies and TV shows, a move that the world’s second largest handset maker hopes will help them sell more devices. The store, which initially launches in the UK, and will be rolled out across Europe in stages, debuted with 10,000 movies and television shows to buy to own, or to rent for a 24 hour period, including blockbusters from Hollywood studios Warner Bros., Paramount, and Universal, as well as content from independent distributors. “Download to own” costs between £6.99 ($9.95) and £16.99 ($24.23) depending on the title, while a 24 hour rental costs between £2.49 ($3.55) and £3.99 ($5.69). Both services will gives users a PC version and a version especially formatted for mobile. The store will initially be available on Samsung’s flagship phone the Tocco Ultra Edition—which is also its best selling device in the UK, and will be rolled out to more models in the upcoming months. Samsung’s ultimate goal, however, is to give consumers access to their movie store on any of its electronic devices that are IP-enabled, including its notebooks, music players and televisions.
But will consumers want to view full-length movies on a phone? Moreover, will they find the experience to complex? Consumers won’t be able to download the movies directly to their phone. They must first download it to their PC’s then sideload it on to their mobile.
Find out more after the jump.
Samsung Head of Content Nick Turner-Samuels told mocoNews that it was the “right time” to launch the movie store as mobile phone technology—screen size, resolution, battery life, and sound quality—has now reached a point where viewing a full length movie on a mobile had become “a real pleasure.” Still, the expectation is that the store won’t yet appeal to the mainstream mobile user or make Samsung a massive profit. “It’s not necessarily a giant profit making machine, but it will be looked at as a revenue making machine,” said Turner-Samuels. He added one of the objectives of the movie store launch with the Tocco was to showcase the capabilities of the device. The store would also allow Samsung to “work more closely” with their channel partners, as it was “the first to market,” and none of the UK carriers, for example, had a competing service.
Last year, Motorola (NYSE: MOT) launched its own full-length movie store in the UK, but only with the films of one studio, Paramount. It’s unclear how the service has performed.
More details on Samsung’s Movie Store:
Download times: A DVD-quality PC file takes approximately 25 minutes for a 1.5 hour movie depending on broadband speeds. Mobile versions take approximately 5-10 minutes to download to the PC, and another 4 minutes to transfer to a phone. Consumers don’t necessarily have to be a Samsung consumer to buy movies, as they can be viewed on a PC, though the mobile versions of the movies will only work on Samsung handsets. The Tocco Ultra has a battery life of just over four hours.
Movies at home, not on the go: Samsung says that it found in their research of movies on mobile that a number of viewers actually watch films while they are at home, rather than on the go.
Expanding the service: The service for now will be focused on Europe, where its partner Acetrax, a British digital retailer with headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, has hammered out the digital distribution rights for Europe with the major Hollywood studios. Indeed, while Samsung could expand into other markets, such as North America, it depends on finding a similar partner who has the US distribution rights.
Posted In: Entertainment, Social Media, Video, Companies, Samsung, Countries, Europe, UK
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