CinemaNow has announced agreements with Warner Music Group, Epitaph Records and TVT Records to sell music videos on a download-to-own basis. As long as it’s to Microsoft Windows Mobile-based “secure” devices, which include Portable Media Centers, Pocket PCs and Smartphones as well as PCs and laptops. The service will be at WatchMusicHere.com and will price the music videos between US$1.99 and US$2.99. The service is launching with a paltry 75 choices, but plans to expland to more than 1,500 by December. Even this latter number is a joke, considering the number of videos that could be offered.
Mediapass has also announced a video download service, again in partnership with Microsoft, and again on the selected “secure” devices. However, Mediapass Music Video Downloads “allows MediaPass Music subscribers access to download free music videos via a 30-day license to download videos to load onto portable devices”. Unfortunately there’s only 10 videos on the page, with no hint how to access others or if the selection is going to change.
All in all, this is the most pathetic launch of a new service offering that I’ve ever seen. I realise video files are a lot bigger than simple music files, something like five times bigger, but that doesn’t explain why music download sites launched with 200,000 songs (and were considered to have not much of a range) whereas music videos can only manage 75. It’s practically useless, and I suspect the intention is more to promote certain bands than to offer consumers a range of choices. If there is some (good – it has to be good) reason for the pitiful offering that has escaped my attention, please let me know. Otherwise… (Articles originally linked to by Rafat on our sister site, BillboardPostPlay)
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