AFI BLOG: Media and Technology

Apple Close to Finalizing iTunes Rental Deals With Most Major Studios - Wired Blog

Sources claim that Apple is close to finalizing deals with at least four of the five major Hollywood studios to allow both movie rentals and sales via iTunes, reports BusinessWeek.

The news comes only a week after the widely reported rumor that Steve Jobs will announce a new iTunes movie rental agreement with 20th Century Fox at next week’s MacWorld Expo. Now, similar deals with studios like Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures, Sony, MGM, Lionsgate and Disney seem to be imminent. And while all the details might not be hammered out in time for a MacWorld mention, the fact that Apple is finally close to appeasing the notoriously nervous Hollywood studios is huge news.

In the past, the Cupertino company has had considerable difficulty replicating the success it’s had in the digital music business to iTunes movie downloads. Currently, Walt Disney is the only studio selling its new releases through the online store. Paramount, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Lionsgate do offer a handful of films through the store, but only their older titles. Analysts attribute this dearth of content to the fact that Hollywood studios have typically resisted the idea of uniform pricing structures, which Apple favors for its iTunes store. As Blackfriars’ Carl Howe notes, they’ve also tend to be “religious” about DRM and protecting digital content.

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