''The world wants television on demand,'' he said, ''but it doesn't want to pay transaction fees.'' Sie predicted that a service with a fixed monthly subscription fee would be far more attractive to consumers than a pay-per-view service. Sie, the chief executive of Starz, ''because the critical mass has been reached in broadband usage.'' Neither Starz nor Real would project how many subscribers they expect, nor would they discuss their financial arrangement. ''It is time for this product,'' said John J. Equally important, the rapid adoption of high-speed broadband Internet connections makes movie downloads more feasible. The time is right, executives say, because consumers have shown they are willing to pay for audio and video content over the Internet, buying songs from services like Apple's iTunes and video of some news and sports offerings, like Major League Baseball. Real and Starz first said they would introduce this service in 2002, but it was delayed several times because of questions over the technology and the reception in the consumer market. But those movies typically can be watched only during a 24-hour period after purchase. A few existing services offer an Internet version of pay-per-view, in which single films can be downloaded for a fee of $1 to $5. The service represents the first time that mainstream films have been available as part of a flat-rate subscription plan over the Internet. The movies available this month include ''Finding Nemo,'' ''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl'' and ''The Poseidon Adventure.'' The new service, called Starz Ticket on Real Movies, will cost $12.95 a month, and subscribers will be able to download and watch 100 or more movies each month, using Real's media player software.Īs on the Starz cable service, which is owned by Liberty Media, the movies available will include recent Hollywood films, usually about a year after they were released, and some older titles. The move is another early attempt by Hollywood to build a business out of downloadable movies and head off the sort of piracy that has hurt the music industry. RealNetworks and the Starz Encore Group will introduce an online service today that will let high-speed Internet users download and watch many of the movies shown on the Starz cable channel.
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