14 DAY TRIAL // Looks like Microsoft has hit it big with their HD Movies and TV downloads service, probably better than anyone expected. People's craving for HD movies downloads over their Xbox Live service was underestimated when everyone said that this service will go bust because there are many other similar services available.
Gizmodo has an interesting material in which they reveal that the Xbox 360 movie downloading service is doing much better than its main competitors are, services such as Amazon Unbox. According to them, consumers are "lukewarm about downloading movies for playback on PCs". This is not surprising, since many Xbox 360 owners are already playing their console games in high definition.
Given the fact that HD movie downloads over the Xbox Live cost just a dollar more than their standard-definition counterparts this is a "cost-effective" experience as Gizmodo points out. But they also say that the compression quality is not that good, as the movies are offered in 720p or 1080i resolution, and not in the highest resolution out there - 1080p. The most popular movie downloads on Xbox Live are V for Vendetta and South Park, which is the already expected situation, if we consider the target audience. Surprisingly as it may seem, The Lake House is also present in the top, and that goes to show that gamers have a more sensitive side.
But there is some more competition on the way for the Xbox movie downloads service, in the form of Apple's iTV device which is said to cause quite a stir once it launches.