Nothing but Good News for UV (1 Viewer)

[Towergrove]

What do you want Apple to announce? They've got a content store that feeds their devices, almost as an afterthought, tho obviously a very successful one. What more do you want? With the exception of Walter Isaacson's "I've cracked it" quote respective to Jobs figuring out a way to integrate cable TV the iTunes market is mature and essentially feature complete.


They arent going to announce support for non Apple devices. They are unlikely to announce web streaming tho I suppose that is more likely than the former. They could announce more social features but social is an afterthought for Apple not a core strength.


So I have no idea what you could expect of them and I'm really intrigued to find out.

4K support would be nice. Also a browser based Itunes.

 

[Towergrove]

I guess he was expecting an announcement about the CFF. Or he was not expecting it, and is just being sarcastic. I am kind of dissapointed myself that we still haven't heard anything about it. At this point it feels like vaporware.


But, it's not that big of a deal as it was to me before. I am pretty satisfied with streaming options, but that is mainly because I have a fast internet connection.What I want out of UV now is more content from smaller studios.

Josh there was news on the Download front and SCSA was discussed which has been mentioned in past articles as being a part of Ultraviolet. The download part of the equation is alive and well. This is the download technology & DRM that will be used in Ultraviolet CFFs and there was even discussion of 4K to boot. I want movies I can purchase and store on my NAS and hard drives!!! It would be nice if it was like Steam which I hear is popular with gamers (I need to try it out myself) . It looks like it is now very close to launch and demoed at CES:

But what about those who have moved on to a discless lifestyle, or are just interested in a version of digital copies that can be carried around? The Secure Content Storage Association has stepped up and, like the BDA, says finalization of its spec is "coming soon." We got a preview of what it's working on this week, when Samsung announced that its new TVs would support 4K downloads from M-Go, by using the SCSA's standards. We got a quick demo of what the consortium has planned and it most reminds us of what we've seen from internet stores for video games like Steam, Xbox and PlayStation.

We'll still need to wait and see exactly how Hollywood studios implement the DRM, but it's set up so users can download copies of movies, store and watch them without hassle. There's an ability to copy, move or share the stored files, and users can access various profiles for different devices like TVs, phones or tablets. In a mocked-up player, users had the option to make a licensed copy, registered to them and playable on any device, or an unlicensed copy. That copy of the movie can be shared, but if someone else wanted to play it, they'd need to buy it from a store in order to unlock it for viewing.

Also built in is support for finding any compatible files across a network, so if the movie is stored on your NAS, a PC, a phone or tethered hard drive, it will pop up in the menu for playback. For better and/or worse, it all struck me as a sort of movie studio-designed variant of XBMC (oops, Kodi) or Plex.

The SCSA is also talking about quality, with support for Ultra HD, HDR and potentially things like high frame-rate video. It's also considering that customers might be able to upgrade their copies to a new version, so if, for example, a remastered HDR version of a movie comes out, it will be in your library. Our remaining questions cover things like studio/store support -- you can count on the usual names from Ultraviolet plus some newcomers, but we'll have to wait and see if Disney jumps in or goes its own way again. It appears that finding compatible devices won't be difficult, and Qualcomm is on board to make sure its chips (probably inside your phones/tablets already) are compatible.

Formerly known as Project Phoenix the SCSA is several years in the making; we'll see if that long gestation was enough to strike a balance between the desires of studios and the customers it hopes will want to pay for downloadable movies.

http://www.engadget.com/2015/01/09/4k-blu-ray-hdd/

 

[Towergrove]

I often wonder when we will see the day when movie streaming is like music streaming is now. I recently got a 2 week trial of Beats because I didn't know anything about it and was shocked that I could stream any album I could think of, including some long out of print. Books have dipped their toes in that water as well with Kindle Unlimited, also $9.99/month.

It would obviously cost a lot more than $9.99 a month, but I could see a day when basically all movies are available for viewing at a monthly rate, making renting/buying terms stuck in the past.

This is possible but subscription fatigue is already setting in with consumers who are not eager to have yet another monthly charge on their credit cards.

 

[Towergrove]

Someone from DECE told me that the CFF is already available for any vendor who wishes to use it, but that it is no longer mandatory. So it looks like there will be no official release date, and if a vendor does not decide to be the first one to release it on their own, it will never come.

Josh this is the first I have heard of this. They have not officially updated the specifications for the format the ones I see show it as still mandatory. Do you have a link to this comment??

 

[Towergrove]

I want a "Real" Apple TV too, Apps and all Josh. But that isn't what I got that Tower was asking for per se tho the Apple TV was mentioned, it seemed she was asking for changes to the ecosystem and I am bearish that much will happen on that from wrt UV support.

A real apple tv with app store support would be fantastic Sam!

 

[bruceames]

CFF would be an absolute necessity if/when 4K comes to UV.

 

[bruceames]

Josh there was news on the Download front and SCSA was discussed which has been mentioned in past articles as being a part of Ultraviolet. The download part of the equation is alive and well. This is the download technology & DRM that will be used in Ultraviolet CFFs and there was even discussion of 4K to boot. I want movies I can purchase and store on my NAS and hard drives!!! It would be nice if it was like Steam which I hear is popular with gamers (I need to try it out myself) . It looks like it is now very close to launch and demoed at CES:



http://www.engadget.com/2015/01/09/4k-blu-ray-hdd/

Thanks for sharing this Sarah. It's great news, especially since SCSA is a part of UV and they talk about being able to upgrade your movies as well.


It makes me wonder though if UHD Blu-ray won't have to play by the same content protection rules. Blu-ray was cracked almost immediately and I doubt the studios will support it without some serious copy protection that is similar to digital.


In any case if this comes to pass it is certainly great news for UV!

 

[Towergrove]

Im very curious about this as it seem they slipped under my radar. They have a good amount of support for this it seems. The website is also nice:


http://www.scsallc.com/


Weather its connected to UV or CFF or not at all it seems that this (as a collector or media) is what I have been waiting for.

 

[Patrick Donahue]

My first question is how would I get my UV collection on the machine? What I mean is with 806 HDX titles if I had to download all that Charter cable would probably bypass data throttling and just burn my house down

 

[Joshua Clinard]

I got the information from an e-mail exchange when I sent customer relations an e-mail about the common file format.


He told me:
You’ll find the most recent version of the publicly available DECE tech specs on this page:http://www.uvcentral.com/frontpage . The consortium membership is currently reviewing a 2.0 version that should be published around the first of the New Year.
CFF is currently available and has been for some time now. Back in September the consortium voted to make use of CFF optional vs. mandatory among licensed UV Retailers. Those changes are reflected in the currently published version of our suite of licensing documents on this page:https://www.uvvu.com/en/us/uv-for-business


I took a look at the SCSA website, and it doesn't appear that it's a part of the UV ecosystem, but Vudu, Warner, and Target are all involved, so it looks like I will be able to get these files for all or most of my movies. Maybe even movies that aren't UV enabled, so that would be great. This technology actually looks like a replacement for CFF, which I guess it is fine with me, if the industry supports it on many devices and all the studio's participate.

 

[bruceames]

It's fine if it's a replacement for CFF, as long as I can use it to download my UV movies (although actually I would only download some of them and rotate my downloaded collection based on my viewing needs).

 

[Joshua Clinard]

There have been a lot of new UltraViolet vendors in the last 6 months:


BlinkBox

Verizon FIOS

Sainsbury's Entertainment

CinemaNow has expanded to Europe!


And now Carrefour has opened a new UltraViolet compatible shop called Nolim Films at www.films.nolim.fr

 

[Chris Will]

This has been an interesting thread to read. Many of the comments echo the inner battle that I'm currently having with myself.


I'm considering cutting back on my Blu-Ray purchases and going more digital, saving BD for only big releases like Hobbit EE type of releases. One reason for this consideration is that I find we are watching the HD digital copies more then grabbing the BD off the shelf anyway, especially when the kids want to watch a Disney movie. Other then that I'm not real sure why, part of me is also sick and tired of the retail exclusives and having to do so much research just to figure out which store to buy the disc at. I'm also impatient and the 2 to 3 weeks early digital release is killing me. Anyway, that's not the real dilemma, I would have no problem buying most digital and saving the crown jewel releases for BD.


The problem is which service to support.


We have an AppleTV (the 2 version that only does 720p) and my wife and I both have an iPhone. Kids use our old iPhones as iPods and for games and movies. I also have an iPad. So, with all that you would think iTunes would be the easy choice but, I also have an LG smart TV, PS4, smart BD player and a Roku player that all have the Vudu app but no iTunes support.


If I decided to go with more digital purchases then I would upgrade our AppleTV to the newer one that does 1080p. I've been trying to hold out thinking Apple was going to release and new version but, I bet they are waiting for me to buy the current model before doing that.


Here is what I like about both services. Vudu HDX looks pretty good to me and their DD+ sounds really good to my ears as well. Not quite BD quality but, not to bad either. The newer app layout is much better then the old one but I still think there storefront is a little clunky. I never seem to have any problems with the streams, they always start within seconds and locks in and holds onto HDX quickly. It's always been pretty smooth.


I love the Apple TV interface, very simple and easy to use. the storefront on the AppleTV is nice and clean and easy to navigate. Getting to my purchased movies is a little easier then Vudu as well. I love how the AppleTV switches to a BD style menu when you launch a movie that includes extras, wish Vudu did this. PQ has always been fine but, like I said, we are limited to 720p with our ATV so, it is not quite as good as Vudu. Audio quality is really good and I honestly can't tell a huge difference between ATV and Vudu. ATV streams have worked just as good as Vudu in my experiences.


There is really not a whole lot that I dislike about either service. I give a slight edge to ATV when it comes to layout and menu navigation though. Prices seem pretty much the same between both services so, it really comes do to compatibility and personal preferences. iTunes purchases integrate with iPhones and iPads mush easier but, the Vudu app works just fine as well. Vudu works on many more devices though which is it's big plus. My parents can also access our movie collection through the Vudu app on there smart TV which makes "lending" movies easy (shhhhh).


I really can't decide which service to go all-in with, there are things I like better about both. This would be so much easier if every movie studio was like Disney with DMA, that way all my purchases would show up everywhere. Right now we have about 80 movies in each service thanks to all the digital copy codes from BDs, yes many are duplicated between the services as well.


I don't really want to use both services because it will be a pain to remember which movies are in which service. Disney movies are easy, they'll show up everywhere. Rokus are cheaper so it is easier to put one with every TV in the house so, that gives the nod to Vudu. We use our AppleTV a whole lot more then our Roku though, which drags me back to the iTunes corner.


Oh well, just ranting. I guess this highlights the big shortcoming of digital. They really need to come up with a way that you can buy a movie once and not have to worry about which devices it is going to work with, should be able to buy anywhere and work everywhere (DMA comes the closest IMO, those movies work on every device I have whether it is iTunes or Vudu).

 

[[email protected]]

"They really need to come up with a way that you can buy a movie once and not have to worry about which devices it is going to work with, should be able to buy anywhere and work everywhere".



Isn't this why they formed the DECE? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Entertainment_Content_Ecosystem I believe someday Apple will get on board so you could choose itunes now and get the benefits of UV later. On the other hand their are alot more UV codes available along with disc to digital for building a library for less money right now.

 

[Patrick Donahue]

Maybe I can tell you what I think, Chris, and it might help you work things through...

About 2 years ago I switched from physical to digital, as I just couldn't stomach spending money on something I just didn't see lasting a heck of a lot longer (it will still exist yes, but without studio support will the selection be there?). I also had become frustrated that if I wanted any title outside of that week's new releases I had to mail order them, whereas digitally I could simply hit "buy."

Since then things have been just fine. No titles lost, the quality is great on my 60in, I miss having extras on older movies but new titles basically all have them. I also find I watch more than I used to, probably because I don't have to get up and walk downstairs to choose a title I'm at 838 titles now and aside from new releases I have pretty much my favorites and can concentrate on other things.

Oh and one thing... don't say "shhhhh" about sharing your collection! You're supposed to be able to do that. Vudu has it set up that way!

I have also been an a long time Apple user, but made the decision early on that any purchase I made would be through the studio's official services UV and DMA. Apple TV is by far my favorite device for ease of use but for movies I simply switch inputs on the TV to the Roku (I don't watch 2 hour movies every day, after all). With the Vudu app my collection is easily available on all my iOS devices.

 

[Ejanss]

About 2 years ago I switched from physical to digital, as I just couldn't stomach spending money on something I just didn't see lasting a heck of a lot longer (it will still exist yes, but without studio support will the selection be there?). I also had become frustrated that if I wanted any title outside of that week's new releases I had to mail order them, whereas digitally I could simply hit "buy."

Since then things have been just fine. No titles lost, the quality is great on my 60in, I miss having extras on older movies but new titles basically all have them. I also find I watch more than I used to, probably because I don't have to get up and walk downstairs to choose a title I'm at 838 titles now and aside from new releases I have pretty much my favorites and can concentrate on other things.

Although convenience hasn't been an issue for me, since I can "just click" a physical disk on Amazon for less than the MSRP+ prices on sale, and I avoid the long, wearying walk by putting my collection in the same room as the screen.

And "lasting longer" is one thing I definitely DO NOT use in the same sentence as "digital". In fact, I've had to rush my 3D Vudu rentals before they decide to retire them into purchase-onlies, which time window I'm trying to figure out at the moment.


I've used Vudu (and the HDX quality is good), but only for new-release rentals, since there's usually a delay on mail-Netflix, they're not likely to show up on streaming-Netflix for at least six months, and because it's better in the winter not to have to take the long walk to the mailbox.

That's an example of a specific tool solving a specific problem, but any smitten love-affairs outside of that are strictly on your own time. (And love will make any man do things he'll regret...)

 

[Joshua Clinard]

I have to agree with Patrick that UV and vudu is the way to go. If you use their Disc to Digital service you can easily build your collection for a fraction of the cost of using iTunes. Vudu works well on my Roku 3. Now that Vudu has been added to the DMA service, there is no reason to choose AppleTV over Vudu in my mind. Also, UV is still somewhat of a beta, new features, content, and streaming/download providers will be added.

 

[Patrick Donahue]

I avoid the long, wearying walk by putting my collection in the same room as the screen.

I get that but I keep my house pretty tastefully decorated and 838 blu-ray cases on shelves in my living room isn't happening

 

[Patrick Donahue]

I have to agree with Patrick that UV and vudu is the way to go. If you use their Disc to Digital service you can easily build your collection for a fraction of the cost of using iTunes.

Exactly. Having said that, I love what Apple does with the Apple TV interface, especially the movie extras. I would LOVE for them to get UV to go with their DMA access...

 

[Ejanss]

I get that but I keep my house pretty tastefully decorated and 838 blu-ray cases on shelves in my living room isn't happening

Now, y'see, that's what I always wanted in mine, but I'm barely cracking 100.


(Always dreamed of having one of those combination home-theater dens and wall-to-wall manor libraries...Decorated in early theater-lobby, with a popcorn machine.)