Monday, January 2, 2006
DirecTV Goes Mobile
Posted by Jeremy Charette in "CONTENT" @ 04:30 PM
"DirecTV is joining TiVo and Dish as a competitor in the portable media market. Next week they’ll be announcing a new partnership, possibly with a hardware vendor and NBC, as part of this mobile content initiative. No word yet regarding which DTV models, current or yet-to-come, and portable devices will be covered. There’s strength in numbers - the more companies that provide us with tools to legally copy and playback free content and content we’ve already paid for, the better. Hopefully a large player like DirecTV will dissuade studios and networks from attempting to block these services now that they’ve found a temporary market to sell shows."
I only wonder what DirecTV will charge for PMC functionality. I've thought it a bit ridiculous that iTunes users are charged $1.99 per episode, for content they can watch over the air for free. I guess people are willing to pay the "convenience fee", but what if you could get that same content from your cable or satellite provider for free as part of your basic service? Or perhaps as an add on subscription fee, $5 or $10 per month? Would you pay for it? I would.
I only wonder what DirecTV will charge for PMC functionality. I've thought it a bit ridiculous that iTunes users are charged $1.99 per episode, for content they can watch over the air for free. I guess people are willing to pay the "convenience fee", but what if you could get that same content from your cable or satellite provider for free as part of your basic service? Or perhaps as an add on subscription fee, $5 or $10 per month? Would you pay for it? I would.
