Nickname: me

Review: For everyone saying that if you accidentally delete your download all is lost, you're wrong. Just like with iTunes music, should you ever delete it, you can re-download it for free. You don't even need to prove you've lost it, so presumably you could download again for no reason. I've personally done this for both music and TV shows, and no complaints here. Not to mention you can download TV shows as they come out for less than the box set. Though not being able to burn them is pretty weak.

Date reviewed: Feb 6, 2007 8:11 PM

Nickname: James Corveddu

Review: What recourse do you have if you lose your DVD or it is destroyed? If you buy a defective DVD, you may exchange it for another of the same title, but no one will give you your money back. I am sure that if one of the digital videos downloaded at Apple is corrupt at the source, they will replace it and let you download it again. If the file is corrupted during download, that should be seen as no different than if you were to have a car wreck on the way home from Wal-Mart and your DVD purchase got broken. When you download from the iTunes store, I am sure you will also get the cover art and perhaps even DVD label art. Not only can they provide the same extra features you get on a DVD, they can also offer additional commentaries, deleted scenes, etc. as they come out.

Date reviewed: Oct 2, 2006 2:03 AM

Nickname: roto31

Review: To me this looks like Wal-Mart using the same tactics they have used for years, strong arming suppliers and maufacturers to get exactly what they want. This is also fear. They know the market iTunes targets and it will definitely cut into the teenage market who are the spur of the moment buys that account for most of the DVD sales.

Date reviewed: Sep 23, 2006 9:51 PM

Nickname: btn

Review: winterm00t: You've got no recourse when the DVD gets corrupted, you lose it, you accidentally throw it away, or it becomes incompatible with later versions of readers in the future. Some people will pay for instant gratification, and convenience.

Date reviewed: Sep 6, 2006 3:00 AM

Nickname: Michael Fortson

Review: Wal-Mart is a publicly-traded company. Stockholders see it as the company's business to maximize profits and shareholder value. If Wal-Mart buys products from the studios for resale, and those same studios offer something perceivably similar for a lower amount to someone else, they should be expected to try to negotiate a better deal for themselves. They would be considered negligent if they didn't pursue this course of action. Wal-Mart's size means that this negotiation has large implications for the studio. It's no more sinister than that.

Date reviewed: Sep 5, 2006 6:29 PM

Nickname: winterm00t

Review: Ignoring the Wal-Mart and Apple issues for a moment, it's difficult to swallow paying that high a price for a downloadable movie when there's no material costs, and the fact that you've got no recourse when the file gets corrupted, you lose it, you accidentally delete it, or it becomes incompatible with later versions of your computer or viewer in the future. Some people still have more money than sense.

Date reviewed: Sep 5, 2006 3:18 PM

Nickname: stu at KSU

Review: The words "pricefixing" and "restraint of trade" come to mind as I read this. And I note the entire lack of the consumer's perspective here. Of course, consumer rights isn't exactly what our government is inclined to protect these days.

Date reviewed: Sep 5, 2006 3:12 PM

Nickname: elvira

Review: People want to download movies. They'll sacrifice higher quality and they'll give up DVD extras to be able to download. They love the convenience. They know they are getting less than they get with a commercial DVD, and they're okay with that. If they want more (the quality and extras only available on a commercial DVD) they can pay more for the real DVD. That's only fair. The movie industry needs to be able to compete with illegal downloading and filesharing. People are downloading movies illegally--because it's convenient. They give up some picture quality when they do this, but they do it anyway. Apple has a great idea with this. I know that I have spent money (that I ordinarily wouldn't spend) buying TV episodes from Apple. Before this service, I would have asked a friend to tape shows for me. Now I buy. This is a great idea. Walmart should not get in the way of progress. This is good for movie studios.

Date reviewed: Sep 2, 2006 8:45 AM

Nickname: Watchout

Review: Wal-Mart is known for its unsavory business tactics and pull production bullying. This unbelievably relentless corporation is doing what it always does--limiting consumer choices by demanding what manufactures produce and sell. Wal-Mart is also known for squeezing pennies out of manufactures and simultaneously squashing quality American jobs. As a result of Wal-Mart's business practices, American now have limited choices on literature, music, and film because artists now have to question whether Wal-Mart will sell their work. When one corporation has so much power over the subjective quality of any form of art or commerce, it kills the American spirit and kills American competition.

Date reviewed: Sep 2, 2006 8:40 AM

Nickname: Robert 2

Review: For "WM Neutral", yes, many of the local retailers that were displaced by Wal-Mart did not pay high wages nor did they offer generous insurance coverage, but neither did they take advantage of their employees or twist the arms of their suppliers, nor reap obscene profits. But those profits that were made by the "local" businesses were re-circulated in the community, and not siphoned off to another state. Not to mention the tax breaks that are given to the Wal-Mart stores by the local/state governments to "entice" the stores, which the "local" retailers don't get. I no longer shop at Wal-Mart, I don't like their lack of ethics, and their focus on low cost rather than quality, and their employee "cult" culture. Nor do I own (nor will I own) an ipod, as a matter of principal, again, in conflict with Apple's (Jobs') corporate culture.

Date reviewed: Sep 2, 2006 6:32 AM