Downloading movies from the Internet? It's been talked about for years now, but is it really happening? Making Movies talks to Nick O'Hagan of World Cinema Online, a new British company which will be doing just that.
Downloading movies from the Internet? It's been talked about for years now, but is it really happening? Making Movies talks to Nick O'Hagan of World Cinema Online, a new British company which will be doing just that.
CV
Perhaps explaining his interest in new technology, Nick O'Hagan got a 1st in Physics from Imperial College London before working his way up through film production. As an independent producer, his credits include Young Adam, Pandemonium and Terry Gilliam's newly completed Tideland.
What is the current state of play with online distribution?
As the number of broadband users increases worldwide, we are getting closer than ever to seeing regular delivery of movies/TV programming over the Internet. I think it's two years away at most. There are a couple of companies in the US already offering movie downloads (Cinemanow.com) but their titles tend to be studio fare, not the major box office material. World Cinema Online is distinct in that it offers award-winning independent titles from all over the world.
What else will make a difference?
Broadband speeds getting faster, continuous increase in numbers of connections, more convergence with televisions being connected to the Internet. We are already seeing set-top boxes which allow you to watch content from the Internet. Soon we will regularly surf channels on our TVs which are being accessed via our broadband lines. The box itself will be like a TIVO or a Sky Plus box which acts as a hard drive that stores programmes.
Next page • So what is World Cinema Online planning to do?
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