On December 12, 2012 at 14:48, bcf1963 said...
I just don't see the allure of KScape...
Second the downloads are going to take a long time. Even if you have available a smokin fast connection, the speeds will likely be throttled by their servers. Then the issue of bandwidth caps will become a real issue.
Server bandwidth is under their control and given their small installed base, I don't expect that to be the bottleneck.
Third, since this is a full download, I assume I'll be forced to sit through the endless trailers and legal notices just like on a BD disk. This drives me up the wall with the BD disks.
This is one of the most clever things about K. They take every movie today and create a special playlist for it that lets it instantly play a BD disc with no trailers, FBI warnings, etc. The same will be just as true for their downloads if they offer the BD master as the download. Exact same code would work against that so I don't see this as an issue.
I have a solution that works for me today, at a fraction of the cost. The problem, is that it is technically illegal. I use MyMovies with AnyDVD HD. I have an optical drive attached to my Home Server, and ripping a movie involves sticking a disk in the drive, and walking away. This rip takes 10-15 minutes... much less time than the download will take Kscape, and at the end I won't have to sit through trailers, as I've configured AnyDVD to rip only the movie and the audio my system needs.
I am unsure of this analogy. You are describing ripping which K does more simply than the solution you mention. See example above for example. I have used Mymovies and it simply is not as elegant, simple or reliable as K. I wish it was. But there are still gaps in usability. Today, if I want to add one more player to a K system, I just buy the player, connect the ethernet cable and I am golden. Creating such a plug-and-play is hard using PCs or even appliances.
If you are a hobbyist on limited budget then what you describe is fine. But for people who can afford K, it is not as competitive.
And again, we are deviating from the subject of the thread which is downloading movies to own in high quality. While I think K is going a bit too far in using BD masters, there is a need for high quality downloads in the market. If folks think there are bandwidth issues, they exist in spades when we are talking about streaming. You can deliver much higher fidelity experience using downloads. I explain the reasoning in this article I wrote a couple of years ago:
[Link: madronadigital.com]Just to give you a short version, typical Netflix stream runs at just 2.5 mbit/sec. Compare this to peak of 48 mbit/sec for BD and essentially infinite if you used a hard disk for playback.
Yes, the long download time up front is not good. I think it is a psychological problem for customers. I think they should allow instant streaming option at the same time. The UV support might give them this. The pre-download option might be even better (activate when the movie is officially released).
I don't feel bad about doing this. I'm buying the movies, and therefore supporting the people that make them. I doubt any company would ever want to take me to court, as what would they claim as how they were damaged? I bought the movie, and have a right to use it. I is only on my home server, and used by one system at a time, just like the disk.
I doubt that anyone will chase you ever. But they are always chasing Slysoft. There are instances of MKB/BD+ updates that make that software not work for a bit of time. This again is unacceptable to high-end customers.
I think this is an effort by a company in their Death Throes to do what they need to in order to stay alive. Unfortunately, I think it will be too little, too late.
I agree K needs a viable new strategy. They face significant risks moving forward. They need to bring out a compelling digital service that is differentiated. They have taken a small to medium step here. They need to take a few more :).
