YouTube now renting movies
YouTube, the Google owned video-sharing website, will now be offering movies to rent. Initially, only five films will be available, and these are only to users in the US. These movies are from the 2009 and 2010 Sundance Film Festival and 4 out of 5 of the films will cost $3.99, around £2.50. After this initial launch, YouTube is expected to get some bigger Hollywood names on board who will be happy to offer their movies to a wider audience.
YouTube does have a major competitor in Hulu, which is a joint venture between NBC, Universal, Fox and ABC and offers TV and films from the major US studios. Currently, Hulu only offers content in the US, but was expected to make a launch in the UK in September 2009. They couldn’t get a major UK TV broadcaster on board in time, so this was delayed. With 4oD and Five on demand now available from YouTube in the UK, Hulu will definitely have to compete hard in the UK, and bringing TV and movie content from its parent companies may help it do so.
The longer users in the UK have to wait for viable services to be available, the more they will turn to alternative ways to get the content they want, such as P2P and file sharing websites. Some services are starting to appear, if you have the right equipment to get them. Sony launched the European PS3 video store in November 2009, which offers over 2000 films for rent or purchase with prices from $1.99 or around £1.75.