AOL Launches Movie Download Service

By Geoff Duncan Published August 24, 2006

These days, it seems like everybody wants to get into the downloadable movie business. Today, it’s AOL, who has just announced the availability of download-to-own movies via its AOL Video site. Movies are prices from $9.99 for back catalog titles to $19.99 for new releases; once downloaded, movies can be viewed offline on a user’s PC, as well as on other PCs and compatible devices. Participating studios include Sony Pictures Entertainment, 20th Century Fox, Universal Pictures, and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group.

“We’re very excited to add digital movie downloads and additional TV content to the already wide-variety of content that we offer through the AOL Video portal,” said AOL Executive VP Kevin Conroy in a statement. “As we continue to build AOL Video into the best source to find millions of free as well as pay-to-download videos, we’ll continue to add more and more high quality branded content to the mix.”

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Movies purchased from AOL require Windows XP, IE6, and Windows Media Player 10, and—so far as we can determine—cannot be burned to standard DVD for viewing..

AOL also announced it is adding television content from 20th Century Fox and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment to the television offerings available through the AOL Video portal site, which organizes available content into more than 50 on-demand channels. Fox content to be available for paid download will include current series like 24,Prison Break, and Bones, along with f/x programming and “classic” Fox shows; Sony plans to offer up free ad-supported content featuring shows like SWAT,Charlie’s Angels, and the short-lived sitcom Action.

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

Audio / Video

Qobuz adds hi-res DSD and DXD tracks to its download store

A photo of an iPhone showing a partial listing of Qobuz downloads available in DSD and DXD formats.

If you prefer to buy and download your music instead of paying a monthly fee to stream it, you probably want to buy that music in the highest-quality format possible. For many audiophiles, that means DSD and DXD, two formats that represent the pinnacle of hi-res digital audio performance, and Qobuz has just announced that it has added both as downloadable options within its online store. This makes Qobuz one of the only companies that lets folks stream or download in the highest possible quality.

For now, the DSD and DXD catalogs are tiny when compared to Qobuz's lossless CD quality and hi-res FLAC library size. The company says "more than 22,500 tracks are now available, mainly in DSD format," as opposed to its FLAC collection, which numbers over 100 million.

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The 10 most popular streaming services, ranked by subscriber count

The Netflix home screen.

When you're comparing the best streaming services, there are plenty of metrics to go by. Comparing them only by their number of subscribers isn't exactly a fair fight. After all not all streaming services are available worldwide. The number of subscribers doesn't exactly address the "worth" of a service, much less whether the app is easy to use. It doesn't even touch on whether the catalog of programming is good, or has what you want to watch on it, which is truly the best metric out there.

However, when we look at total subscriber counts, we can see how each service does from a global perspective. Considering we're looking at everything from streaming giants like Netflix and Hulu, to newer services like Apple TV Plus. For this post, we're not talking about free (FAST) streaming services or live TV streaming services, but the big VOD services.

Audio / Video

The Digital Trends guide to FAST streaming services

Amazon Freevee.

When it comes to the best streaming services, your mind probably goes right to video-on-demand (VOD) services like Netflix, Disney+, or Amazon Prime Video. They're super popular, and have tons of paying subscribers. However, they aren't the only streaming services worth checking out.

If paying for too many streaming services is biting into your budget, then it might be time to check out free advertising-based streaming television (FAST). But what are these magical "free" TV services? Let's find out.
What is FAST TV?
Think of it like the streaming version of broadcast TV, or watching cable at home. Shows have a set schedule, and everyone using the service is watching the same thing, using ads. Unlike live TV streaming services that you pay for, such as YouTube TV or Hulu with Live TV, there's no up-front cost to the consumer. Everything on these services is supported by advertising — you just won't have access to the "good" channels like you would with paid streaming services.