Our dreams of throwing away discs forever are about to get a step closer, with iTunes to match DVD shops for latest release movies. If only they were available in Australia.
Apple is expected to announce later today that future feature film release dates for overseas users of the iTunes Store, will now coincide with retail DVD release dates.
The groundbreaking move is expected to involve the likes of Fox, Disney, Warner Bros, Paramount, Universal, Sony, Lionsgate and New Line. MGM is conspicuous by its absence.
While the move makes iTunes more attractive for overseas users, Australian iTunes Store users don't yet have access to movies and TV shows.
No official figures are available as of yet on current volumes of sale, but the announcement later today, predicted by the Hollywood Reporter, should include the relevant data, and we'll bring that to the party as soon as we have it.
The move is expected to bring pressure to bear on the likes of Amazon's Unbox service and Microsoft's Xbox Live Marketplace, and we fully expect similar deals to be hammered out by all major competitors soon.
Makers of DVD cases should soon be looking for something more useful to do with their time.