Post by Paul Danderson with Malibu Home Network Installers,
Inc
Apple's plans for cloud computing go beyond music.
The company's representatives have recently
spoken with some of the major film studios about enabling iTunes users to store their content on the company's servers, two
people familiar with the discussions told CNET.
That's in addition to streaming television shows and music.
Apple has
told the studios that under the plan, iTunes users will access video from various Internet-connected devices. Apple would,
of course, prefer that users access video from the iPad, the company's
upcoming tablet computer, the sources said.
Apple spokesman Tom Neumayr said Apple doesn't comment on rumors or speculation.
The news comes a month after Apple spoke to the major record companies about a similar plan involving music.
Apple's vision is to build proverbial digital shelves where iTunes users store their media, one of the sources, adding "basically,
they want to eliminate the hard drive."
By cramming digital songs, videos, and all manner of software applications
on computers and handheld devices, there's some indication that consumers are maxing out hard drives, particularly on smaller
mobile devices.
That has led to speculation among Apple watchers that some consumers might slow their purchasing
of new content, if they have nowhere to easily put it.
It's a bit of leap to reach that conclusion, certainly when a stagnant
economy might be hampering sales, but there are some worrisome signs. The NPD Group reported last week that the number of
people who legally downloaded songs dropped by nearly a million, from 35.2 million in 2008 to 34.6 million last year.
Screen Digest, a research firm that focuses on
the entertainment industry, on Monday said growth in movie downloads slowed dramatically in 2009, following sharp increases in the two prior years. Screen Digest had projected that total
U.S. online movie sales for 2009 would come in at about $360 million, but the total reached only $291 million, the company
said.
"(Apple) just doesn't have the leverage it once did. Apple can't dictate terms or position itself as a digital
savior." --James McQuivey,
Forrester analyst
Before iTunes users can store their movies and TV shows in Apple's cloud,
the company must get the studios to sign on. This may not be easy. The studios want to make sure that Apple's plans play nice
with non-Apple devices and services.
Hollywood isn't interested in any walled gardens, said James McQuivey, a media analyst at
Forrester Research.
