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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2009
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 OPINION 
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Hollywood Shouldn't Fear the Internet

Viewers will flock to online movie downloads: Economist

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(Newser) – Hollywood is ignoring the public's desire to download films at its own peril, the Economist reports. It's no surprise that studios are sticking to their business model, especially with huge DVD profits, but the industry could reap fine earnings from downloads. Meanwhile, pirate sites like the surprisingly spiffy ZML.com are reaping the benefits.

What's more, a first-time DVD sales drop last year may signal that the DVD boom is over. And despite the hurdles—the time it takes to download a film, the preference of viewers for TV over computers—Hollywood should consider the gains of truly effortless, universal access to online video stores with endless capacity.

Blockbuster CEO James Keyes poses in the corporate offices in Dallas, Thursday, Nov. 1, 2007. Customers, he said, will someday soon go to kiosks in Blockbuster stores to burn movies on to a disk or download them directly to a portable device such as a phone or flash drive. Keyes...
Blockbuster CEO James Keyes poses in the corporate offices in Dallas, Thursday, Nov. 1, 2007. Customers, he said, will someday soon go to kiosks in Blockbuster stores to burn movies on to a disk or...   (Associated Press)
The just released Apple TV on display with the movie,
The just released Apple TV on display with the movie, "The Incredibles" showing at the Apple store in Palo Alto, Calif., Monday, March 26, 2007. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)   (Associated Press)
Movie gift certificates on display, lower left, with the just released Apple TV on display in background at the Apple store in Palo Alto, Calif., Monday, March 26, 2007. Apple TV is a set-top box that can wirelessly stream or download iTunes videos, podcasts and music from a computer to...
Movie gift certificates on display, lower left, with the just released Apple TV on display in background at the Apple store in Palo Alto, Calif., Monday, March 26, 2007. Apple TV is a set-top box that...   (Associated Press)
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