Why does Apple force iTunes 8 users to buy an Apple TV?
If Apple will let you download HD television to your computer, Adam Turner wants to know why you still need to buy an Apple TV to watch HD movies.
Amongst all the fuss about paper-thin iPods there was a far more interesting announcement - the iTunes Store is finally offering high definition television downloads. Unfortunately HD television is only available from the US iTunes store, costing $1 more than standard-def episodes.
It comes with the announcement that Apple and NBC have made friends again, which will increase the range of television shows available through the iTunes store.
Can Australians get round the US-only HD restrictions?
Once again Australians get screwed, although there are ways to circumvent such restrictions and access the US iTunes store from Australia. Downloading a 1.6GB HD episode of something like Lost also downloads the 640MB SD version as well, so keep an eye on your downloads.
The really interesting thing is that you can download a HD television show straight into iTunes on your computer, using the newly released iTunes 8. Despite this, Apple still insists you need to buy an Apple TV if you want to watch HD movies. What's going on here?
Blatant money grab, or is this movie studios playing big brother?
I doubt it would be a technical limitation, not if HD television works on the desktop. Forcing people to buy Apple TVs is either a blatant money grab by Cupertino or a licensing condition from the studios. Perhaps it's a little from Column A and a little from Column B.
You can't transfer HD TV to iPhone or iPod
Just to further complicate things, it seems HD television shows can't be transferred to an iPhone or iPod - creating the ludicrous situation where some content is restricted to one playback platform, some content restricted to two platforms and some accessible on all three platforms. I'm guessing that's one of the reasons why Apple throws in an SD version when you download HD television shows, as the SD version can be transferred to an iPod/iPhone. It's enough for you to turn your back on Apple's HD content completely until such stupid restrictions are removed.
What's on offer
If you wander over to the US iTunes store you'll see there are 14 series available in HD, including Lost, Battlestar Galactica and Heroes. There's a handful of free episodes on offer, so you can get a taste of HD.
Strange things seem to be happening, though. Even with a US iTunes account I couldn't buy SD or HD television shows, but I could buy music. At first I thought iTunes 8 was managing to weed out non-US users, but the fact I could still buy music suggests this isn't the case.
It turns out there's a bug with the US iTunes store that means some people can only download video if they enable one-click purchases rather than using the shopping cart. I prefer the safety net of using the shopping cart, so I hope they get it sorted soon.
Switching to the Apple TV, the US iTunes store was advertising HD downloads but, when I followed the links, I was only offered SD options.
The introduction of HD television downloads has all the hallmarks of another half-baked Apple launch. Even when they do get it sorted, I don't see why people should be expected to shell out $AU329+ to watch HD movies if they've already got a perfectly good Mac in their lounge room.
Offering HD television sans-Apple TV, but not HD movies, just rubs salt into the wound.
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