Disney announces a new way to watch movies without having the disk.

[OogieBoogie]

The Wall Street Journal is reporting today that Disney has announced the latest in mobile movie and television show viewing technology. The new technology, code named ‘Keychest’, will enable consumers to purchase a movie or TV show and have permanent access to it, thus allowing it to be viewed on a computer, IPhone, On Demand services, and various other digital platforms and devices.

How does this work? When a person buys a movie from a ‘Keychest’ participating store, the persons account with other participating services (mobile phones, on demand cable service, etc) will be updated to show the title as available for viewing. If the movie is purchased at a non-participating store, the individual will be given a code which they can input online to ‘unlock’ the movie. The movie is not downloaded, but is instead resides within a special server with each particular company (cell phone provider, cable company, or phone company).

Bob Chapek, president of Disney’s Home Entertainment Division, says that while Disney doesn’t expect to see any positive financial results with the technology for about 5 years, he predicts that ‘Keychest’ along with Blu-Ray will help bring back the lagging sales of DVD’s and Blu-Ray’s , which has fallen as much as 25% with some studios.

But Disney is not alone in trying to develop this new technology. Sony Entertainment has also announced their own version of ‘Keychest’ called DECE (Digital Entertainment Content Eco-system). DECE was announced a little over a year ago and already has 5 major studios signed on to it along with a few tech companies like Comcast and Intel.

Currently, there is no date for either ‘Keychest’ or DECE to be released.

The article can be found at Ditch the DVDs: Disney's 'Keychest' Alters Idea of How to Own a Movie - WSJ.com

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[Timekeeper]

Hmmmm, I wonder how well this will go over with families and fans?

Timekeeper

[Moonliner]

Cautiously optimistic.

If I get a copy of the media (blu-ray, dvd, etc..) and they add in the access rights then Yahoo! I'm all for it.

If they eliminate the physical media entirely so I'm forever dependent on them keeping their servers up, then I'll have to wait and see.

[egamer25]

I just can't (won't) support a bussiness model where i don't have a physical media. I cannot trust that at some point {they} won't just descide to turn off servers thus goodbye to my content. Look at VMK I had invested time and MONEY (by buying park merch to get codes.) Then they just shut it down. I want a backup copy that I own and have.

[Retrocool]

Originally Posted by Moonliner

If they eliminate the physical media entirely so I'm forever dependent on them keeping their servers up, then I'll have to wait and see.

Sounds like the way it used to be, when film reels were not taken home by moviegoers, nor were they available for sale to the general public.

It would certainly be a more solid way to combat piracy.

[Retrocool]

Originally Posted by egamer25

I just can't (won't) support a bussiness model where i don't have a physical media.

So, you've stopped going to theaters and concerts? Or do you insist on your "right" to go into the projection room and touch the film print or get up onstage and touch the performers and/or instruments before you go home?

Originally Posted by egamer25

I cannot trust that at some point {they} won't just descide to turn off servers thus goodbye to my content.

Ah, but then, it's not really YOUR content, legally speaking, it's theirs. They own the intellectual property rights. You don't. You just own a temporary physical copy of that intellectual property. It's as if you owned a copy of a book. Doesn't give you full legal rights to the book's contents. Just gives you the "right" to own that copy, or a copy, period.

Originally Posted by egamer25

Look at VMK I had invested time and MONEY (by buying park merch to get codes.) Then they just shut it down. I want a backup copy that I own and have.

If they can make a profit while providing you with what you want, they might do it. If they make more money by denying you that which you desire, chances are good that you won't get what you want.

How does it feel, being the plaything of a corporation?

[sailerm]

Something that you touch upon Retrocool. Going to the cinema. It's been a long time since people actually going to the movies was the primary source of revenue for the movie studios.

They have long relied on DVD, Cable, and merchandising to carry the financial load. While I think the current boom in Digital 3D has been a good move for the studios , as this is something that cannot be duplicated at home. I think this is a short term gain at best.

Motion Picture studios need to focus on their core business, which they have largely ignored for over 10 years. Make films people want to see... in theaters.

If that means slowing down the theater to home video window, or pulling catalog titles out of circulation for 10 years (Disney's seven year rotation seems almost to quick, given the amount of VHS, LaserDisc, DVD, and blue ray releases there have been)

[Retrocool]

Originally Posted by sailerm

Something that you touch upon Retrocool. Going to the cinema. It's been a long time since people actually going to the movies was the primary source of revenue for the movie studios.

They have long relied on DVD, Cable, and merchandising to carry the financial load. While I think the current boom in Digital 3D has been a good move for the studios , as this is something that cannot be duplicated at home. I think this is a short term gain at best.

Motion Picture studios need to focus on their core business, which they have largely ignored for over 10 years. Make films people want to see... in theaters.

If that means slowing down the theater to home video window, or pulling catalog titles out of circulation for 10 years (Disney's seven year rotation seems almost to quick, given the amount of VHS, LaserDisc, DVD, and blue ray releases there have been)

I must admit, much as I love the overall convenience of DVDs and cable, it just can't match up to the overwhelming joy of seeing a movie in a theater. NOBODY has made a home theater or monitor (even with a digital projector) that can match the size of a motion picture theater screen.

And I miss the excitement of Disney's theatrical re-releases. There once was a time when you could actually get excited that an old movie was coming back to theaters, and you were gonna get the chance to see it. (Do you have any idea just how much FUN it was to see Swiss Family Robinson on the big screen in 1972? I went back and saw it multiple times and played "pirate attack" in my backyard all the time then!)

I can't get excited about DVD release dates. There's no air of anticipation there. People don't line up to buy copies of a DVD like they used to line up to see a movie re-release (and sometimes still do).

The very idea of owning your own copy of a movie, let alone several movies, is only about 30 years old.

I'm actually planning my first DVD purchase in over a year, and that's of a movie that didn't get a big theatrical release originally (I missed it when it came to my city), and was delayed over a year from its original theatrical release. I haven't been excited about the prospect of buying a DVD in YEARS.

That same sort of excitement used to be standard for movie theaters. It was like the circus coming to town - some big new movie was coming to your local theater, and you should run - not walk - to be first in line to see it.

Now it's get up from your bed, shuffle over to the computer, download a movie, or get a DVD in your mailbox. Big whoop. No excitement. I didn't even need to get dressed or take a shower. Where's the fun in that?

[Disneyphenom]

Originally Posted by Retrocool

Ah, but then, it's not really YOUR content, legally speaking, it's theirs. They own the intellectual property rights. You don't. You just own a temporary physical copy of that intellectual property. It's as if you owned a copy of a book. Doesn't give you full legal rights to the book's contents. Just gives you the "right" to own that copy, or a copy, period.

Yep. But the book in my library doesn't disappear when they decide to stop selling it at the bookstore. Or when the bookstore burns down, has a power failure, or has low sales and is closed down.

Give me a physical book any day over a digital copy. And give me a DVD of the film I want to watch over and over with my baby boy, who wouldn't understand if I explained the ins-and-outs of business when suddenly he can't see his beloved Tigger because Disney decided to pull the plug on this offering...

[Broadway Guru]

Why does this sound like the second coming of DivX?

[sailerm]

Originally Posted by Broadway Guru

Why does this sound like the second coming of DivX?

Yes, it does. Because the studios are more concerned with pumping more revenues from catalog titles than new product, but it's a glutted market as most of those VHS, Laserdiscs, and DVD's are still out there in peoples collections.

If they can move us away from a physical copy, or even worse give us a physical copy with a revocable key code (blue ray), then they can sell us the same thing over and over again.

[BrizMarc]

I cant wait until we get to a stage where this kind of thing works, I honestly dont think owning hard disks will ever go away. I think we will get to a stage to have both and they will work hard in hand. I dont see bluray going anywhere anytime soon. Its DVD that wont exist in the next few years.

[Retrocool]

Originally Posted by Disneyphenom

Yep. But the book in my library doesn't disappear when they decide to stop selling it at the bookstore. Or when the bookstore burns down, has a power failure, or has low sales and is closed down.

That's true. It disappears when some inconsiderate lout decides not to return it.

But books do go out of print all the time, as do music albums, as do DVDs. Even if you have a physical copy of whatever the content is.

Originally Posted by Disneyphenom

Give me a physical book any day over a digital copy. And give me a DVD of the film I want to watch over and over with my baby boy, who wouldn't understand if I explained the ins-and-outs of business when suddenly he can't see his beloved Tigger because Disney decided to pull the plug on this offering...

Sure, you can't explain it easily to a child, but I also recall being a child, and the fact that certain movies and TV episodes weren't always available to me whenever I wanted. There were even times when I had to wait to read a favorite book again until someone else brought it back to the library.

It's called learning patience and self-discipline, and we're in pretty short supply of it in these days of instant gratification. Even the Rollling Stones knew that you can't always get what you want.

[sailerm]

I dont see bluray going anywhere anytime soon. Its DVD that wont exist in the next few years.

Blue ray is more at risk of going away since it holds so little of the market. DVD still holds something like 95% of the physical media market.

[hugsiscy]

Originally Posted by egamer25

I just can't (won't) support a bussiness model where i don't have a physical media. I cannot trust that at some point {they} won't just descide to turn off servers thus goodbye to my content. Look at VMK I had invested time and MONEY (by buying park merch to get codes.) Then they just shut it down. I want a backup copy that I own and have.

If they eliminate the physical media entirely so I'm forever dependent on them keeping their servers up, then I'll have to wait and see.