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Thoughts on iTunes Extras/LP
hey DVD Authoring Cow!
i normally post in the SAN Networks and Color forums, but i’ve also spent a good amount of time authoring DVDs and BDs over the years. i get a lot of questions on what the future holds with things like Hulu, YouTube and iTunes, vs the physical formats. all of my BD projects thus far have been for projection only because so few have the funds to do a small BD replication run. with the help of various websites, i’ve been dissecting the new iTunes LP format and its basically a Webkit bundle (see this site for example – https://ituneslp.net/). i believe iTunes Extras is built in the same way. its like a combo of DVD authoring and web site design. i am most interested in iTunes Extras as this bridges the gap between a video download and a DVD with menus and added content. some of my clients have been asking me about iTunes Extras as a why to get rid of the DVD/BD replication overhead and many like the fact that downloads can be viewed as “green” – no manufacturing, packaging or shipping. it even looks like you could take an existing DVD menu and layout and port it to Webkit without too much trouble. of course, i could be completely wrong about that.
what are your thoughts? is this the way things are going?
does anyone know if theres an “official” authoring package for iTunes Extras available from Apple or anywhere else?
thanks
e
Eric Hansen – The Audio Visual Plumber – http://www.avplumber.com
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9 Replies
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Great discussion topic!
There’s no doubt that we will be watching all entertainment from Net someday but DVD is still king and remain that way for several years. Of course it all depends on who your audience is as well. iTunes and especially iTunes Extras is way beyond what Joey Beer Can and Wendy Wine Cooler can absorb at this point. I think its important to put yourself in the others shoes. Think of all the people in our lives that have no interest in technology. They have internet and use a computer for basic stuff but they wouldn’t consider it as a replacement for their 4×3 TV. These folks make up about 80% of the world. Then there are folks who have no interest in a computer or the net…but these folks sure like movies 🙂
I think alot of us here (especially clients with cash to spend) forget what the real world is like. People who work in Film/video and the entertainment industry live upon new technology and media. We’re driven by it and thats what makes the “new best thing” the killer app. However, the real world is much different than our own.
I’m not saying abandon any new ideas of course. But lets just put this idea that we will all be downloading ALL programs in the next 3 or 4 years to bed. Physical will be around a long time. Itunes Extra is cheap so it makes sense to go that route. But again, don’t forget who buying the stuff.
E
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hey eric
i couldnt agree with you more.
before posting this question, i looked around at a few other threads that talked about the death of discs and that everything will be downloaded in 4-5 years. i agree that DVD is still king and i think it has a lot of life left in it. i’ve rented a few BDs and i’ve been very disappointed with the menus and design compared to the very mature state of DVD authoring. where my clients are coming from is this weird in-between place in regards to HD. making a DVD is automatic, but when they start talking about HD, BD is not an automatic. in my small town, i only know one other person with a BD player that isnt a PS3. i think its a chicken or the egg thing. i think this Christmas will decide the future of Blu-Ray. but my clients are currently scared off by the lack of players – that they won’t sell the minimum replication run. i used to work at an action sports production company that, even though everything has been produced in HD for over 4 years now, have not release a BD because they think they won’t sell the minimum run.
i think the main hinderance right now to downloading is there’s no common format. iTunes Extras could be a future glimpse of this common format since its based on free protocols like H.264, HTML and Java.
e
Eric Hansen – The Audio Visual Plumber – http://www.avplumber.com
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Question I have is will Apple ever let me sell my movie directly on iTunes the way say an iPhone developer can sell their app? Right now it seems to be only big Hollywood studios only or these indie companies who somehow can get some movies into the Store but for a percentage. That would be nice… 🙂
Noah
Check out my book: RED: The Ultimate Guide to Using the Revolutionary Camera! Unlock the secrets of 24p, HD and Final Cut Studio.
Call Box Training now featuring the Sony EX1 Guidebook, Panasonic HVX200, Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon 7D, and Panasonic DVX100. -
hey Noah
i don’t think its much different. doesn’t Apple take a percentage of App sales?
here’s the link for the iTunes Store page for TGR – i used to do color correcting, audio mixing and post there, among other things: https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewRoom?fcId=292009317&id=37
it wasnt difficult to get them in the store in the technical sense, but the biggest difficulty was the music licensing. it was really easy to license music for 10,000 or so DVDs, but as soon as we started asking for downloads or video on demand to be added to the contract, the licensing costs went through the roof. also, their video prices are not as flexible as app prices. but i think they are getting better about it.
e
Eric Hansen – The Audio Visual Plumber – http://www.avplumber.com
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I have zero problem with Apple getting a percentage of the sale but how exactly do I start selling my content on the iTunes Store? Have yet to see a simple method that doesn’t involve a 3rd party.
Noah
Check out my book: RED: The Ultimate Guide to Using the Revolutionary Camera! Unlock the secrets of 24p, HD and Final Cut Studio.
Call Box Training now featuring the Sony EX1 Guidebook, Panasonic HVX200, Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon 7D, and Panasonic DVX100. -
hey noah
contact me offline: avplumber at mac dot com and i can give you specific details
in general, i just contacted Apple directly and got the ball rolling. Apple worked with us to create a “storefront” for the specific titles we were looking to sell online. yes there are some contracts to go through, but really it wasnt much different than getting a DVD replicated, and actually much easier than dealing with a DVD distributor. technically the toughest part was dealing with the fact that they wanted 24p and all our movies at the time were 60i. i couldn’t tell you if our experience was different than others however.
e
Eric Hansen – The Audio Visual Plumber – http://www.avplumber.com
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email sent! 🙂
Noah
Check out my book: RED: The Ultimate Guide to Using the Revolutionary Camera! Unlock the secrets of 24p, HD and Final Cut Studio.
Call Box Training now featuring the Sony EX1 Guidebook, Panasonic HVX200, Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon 7D, and Panasonic DVX100. -
I would surely like to know some details as well! Another email sent!
E
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after getting some emails offline from other COW members, i’m updating this post
in order to get a video into the iTunes store, Apple told me that i have to go through a traditional DVD distributor that also does iTunes. since this is what Noah had said, i’m not surprised. they gave me a list of some distributors and included in that list was Tunecore, which i’ve used before for music. using Tunecore might be the easiest for most of the producers on this forum. they have an FAQ regarding videos here: https://www.tunecore.com/faq#Video
here’s the list of distributors that Apple sent me. i’m sure there are many more in addition to these 5:
New Video
newvideo.comKOCH Entertainment Distribution
kochent.comCinetic Rights Management
cineticmedia.comTunecore
tunecore.comIODA
iodalliance.comi have also used VAS Entertainment, which specializes in Action Sports, vasentertainment.com
e
Eric Hansen – The Audio Visual Plumber – http://www.avplumber.com
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