It seems the internet has replaced, or augmented so many other previous entertainment technologies. For the past several years people have been able to read their newspapers, and magazines, or listen to their favorite music via the internet. So, what has taken so long for the movie industry to catch up? First, for the past several years most of the large movie production studios have been fighting online release of movies until they could ensure their productions had limited exposure to piracy (BBC Online News, 2006). Second, the proper online distribution web sites never truly seemed to materialize until recently with the entrance of internet movie download or rental sites like Apple, CinemaNow, Movielink and Netflix(BBC News Online, 2006).
However, in the past several years the online movie download concept does appear to have picked up steam within the film and television Industry. There now seems to be a fair amount of positive progress being made by several major production studios in regards to releasing film and television productions online. In 2006 several the major US film studios Universal Pictures, Warner Brothers and Twentieth Century Fox agreed to release
References: Briggs, C. (2006). EU ponders putting movies on web. Retrieved Sept. 20, 2008, from BBC News Web site: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4871392.stm Pellettieri, J Braue, D. (2008). Apple has killed the video store; will ISP be next? Retrieved Sept. 24, 2008, from CNET.com: http://www.cnet.com.au/wireless/streamingmedia/0,239028928,339291433,00.htm Chmielewski, D. (2006). The Online box Office Is Growing. Retrieved Sept. 21, 2008, from LA Times Online: http://articles.latimes.com/2006/sep/06/business/fi-movies6 Gonzalez, N Gentile, G. (2004). Film industry files anti-piracy suits. Retrieved Sept. 21, 2008, from USA Today Online: http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/techpolicy/2004-11-16-film-piracy-suit_x.htm http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=176060&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=903244&highlight Amazon Video ™.(2008) http://www.amazon.com/b/?ie=UTF8&node=16261631&tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=2491398855&ref=pd_sl_59tkcf7vae_b Apple iTunes Movies ™.(2008) http://www.apple.com/itunes/whatson/movies.html Cinema Now™.(2008) Online Movies Given Release Boost. (2006, April 03). Retrieved Sept. 23, from BBC News Web site: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4871392.stm Littlejohn, J