Althouse: 99-cent TV show rentals from iTunes.

August 25, 2010

99-cent TV show rentals from iTunes.

That would be nice.

14 comments:

Anonymous said...: It would be nice, but take every report about Apple with a few grains of salt. Most reporting on future actions of Apple are just rumors and speculation by people who either have agendas or are trolling for web page hits.

That said, this seems like one of the more likely stories, as it fits with what they are already doing with movies.; 8/25/10, 9:50 AM
MadisonMan said...: I've been thinking it would be nice to start watching 30 Rock, but I'd rather just rent the DVDs from the library. That's free.; 8/25/10, 9:54 AM
al said...: Overpriced. For a 2 day rental it should be 25 cents at most.

That said - the Apple fanboys will love it.; 8/25/10, 10:15 AM
Thorley Winston said...: I've been thinking it would be nice to start watching 30 Rock, but I'd rather just rent the DVDs from the library. That's free.

Is it still considering “renting” if they’re “free”? I know that some libraries charge a nominal fee for new releases but I’ve always felt funny hearing people calling it “renting” instead of “borrowing” when they don’t have to pay extra for it.

But I’m with you on getting DVDs from the library. Ours it pretty good at ordering new releases within a couple of months of when they become available on DVD. My only problem is that a lot of other patrons don’t take good care of what they borrow so some of them get damaged or lost.

Alternatively, we have several nice Half-Price Books in the Twin Cities so I can usually pick up an entire season of a show I want to watch for $15-30 (or less if I wait for a sale or use a coupon).; 8/25/10, 10:21 AM
Calypso Facto said...: My first thought was, "Do we really need a way to watch MORE tv?"

Second, though I understand the portability issue, I still laugh that people would pay extra to watch a small-format program that they are most likely already paying a premium for on their big-screen at home.

And third, nice 'stache author Jim Dalrymple!; 8/25/10, 10:26 AM
Scott M said...: Most people still don't have their computers set up for movie watching, although that's certainly changing. With a compatible TV, it's really not that difficult to run streamed video from your comp...if you're willing to sacrifice some quality.

Netflix works just fine for me and mine.; 8/25/10, 10:35 AM
Ann Althouse said...: I think it would work well with iPad.; 8/25/10, 10:47 AM
chuck b. said...: 30 Rock is so funny!; 8/25/10, 10:50 AM
kjbe said...: Speaking of the iPad - I've taken to streaming to it through Netflix and have that same odd sense of freedom to roam the house (as we all did that first time with a cordless phone) and not miss a beat.

As for paying a buck for a 48 hour rental - I suspect I'll be pursuing other options before I'm left with that.; 8/25/10, 11:12 AM
Alex said...: You know lost in the haze of media center PCs is the fact that 90% of the American people just have a DVD player hooked up to a TV.; 8/25/10, 1:01 PM
fivewheels said...: I recently downloaded Season 3 of "Dexter" from Amazon for less than $1.60 an episode. And now I own those files.

That seems like a considerably better deal, and that capability already exists, and I can watch those files on devices that don't shut down when you touch them. But since these downloads aren't an Apple scheme, there's no reason for the press to swoon like little girls, I suppose.; 8/25/10, 2:02 PM
Known Unknown said...: An entire season rental of 30 Rock (or similar) would cost in the neighborhood of $23.00.

Just buy the DVDs for $30 and you own them for life. And, you can import them into iTunes to watch on your iPad, iPhone or whatever.

99 cents to own a song is a good deal. To rent an episode of a TV show? Nah.; 8/25/10, 2:46 PM
Lance said...: I occasionally like watching the NFL. I'd consider paying a buck to "rent" a replay, especially after a busy weekend when I didn't get to catch any games.; 8/25/10, 4:56 PM
Unknown said...: Wow really i don't know about this earlier...i also love to Watch ER Online you can also try....; 8/26/10, 4:26 AM