Andre Yoskowitz
29 Apr 2008 17:51
CinemaNow has introduced a new mobile feature for its service that will allow any web-enabled mobile device to download digital movies.
There is a catch however. You cant play the movies on your phone, the service only allows you to download the movies using your phone, to a PC at home, as long as the PC has the CinemaNow Media Manager installed and running. According to the service's FAQ section, "On CinemaNow Mobile you can browse the same CinemaNow video selection, watch trailers, make purchases and have the video download at any of your PC's."
If you don't really get the point of the service, CinemaNow tries to explain it better:
"Let's say you're at the bus station or at a friend's house, thinking about what to watch tonight when you get back home. Once you bought and sent your video to your home PC via your phone, it will be there for you waiting to be watched when you get back."
It is an interesting idea if you want to remotely download a film, but those who use CinemaNow know that a streamed movie starts very quickly so this service seems like it will only save a few minutes at best.
More interestingly however, is that CinemaNow's chief operating officer David Cook says movies that can be played on phones is coming sometime in 2009, with more details to follow.