Steve Jobs melts my face off
October 12, 2005 at 05:18 PM
As an entrepreneur and business guru, visionary, and overall inspiration, Steve Jobs is simply incomparable. He makes pigs fly.
I think that with the right plays, and the Intel thing, Apple could honestly move into non-laughable market share on the PC.
But I'm not going to talk about that.
Today Jobs announced, among other things, the newest new iPod. No, not the Nano, that was new last week (btw, have you seen the Nano? That thing is just insanely cool). There's an even newer iPod.
Yes, you heard me, video. What kind of video you ask? Well music videos, shorts, home movies... all stuff you'd expect.
Only get this... how about this most recent episode of LOST? Yes, with the new iPod and the latest release of iTunes, Apple is now offering what you used to have to obtain illegally through bit torrent.
While Hollywood is positively hemorrhaging from anxiety over bit torrent, Steve-o is offering a simple solution. A proactive solution, and a solution that for some reason eludes everyone in Hollywood. They are so busy hemorrhaging that they can't make any progress. Enter: Steve Jobs.
Why he has to be the vanguard for embracing reality is beyond me, but he's it, and he's the only one that seems to get through to those idiots.
If this all sounds familiar, it's because it is.
Remember back when the record industry was hemorrhaging over Napster? Remember what Steve Jobs did then?
But this isn't a rant at how stupid Media Brass are (that'd take too much energy). This is a rant about how brilliant Steve Jobs is.
And here's my favorite thing about today's announcement.
And this is huge.
Ready?
This ushers in the long awaited TV a la carte.
You want it, I want it, everyone in the WORLD wants it.
And frankly, I'm happy to pay for it. I can't pay for it today, so I use bit torrent, but I'd sure as shootin' pony up $2 to download a show I can't live without. And then have the versatility to watch it on any device? Keep it forever? Burn it to a DVD? No commercials? High quality? Oh you better believe I'm all over that. And just like Jobs took the recording industry by storm, he'll now take Hollywood by storm and everyone will win.
Yes, I mean it when I say Steve Jobs makes pigs fly. Oh, and he melts my face off.
You said it...I am so excited to see Apple finally getting into the video download arena. There are some initial drawbacks to the video. I haven't downloaded any shows yet, but John Gruber is saying that the video resolution is only 320×240. I'm not too worried though, I see this as a pilot project before they do to video what they did to music.
I also think they need to change the name of the application from iTunes to iPlay or iMedia or something more fitting of its capabilities. With the addition of video, it is bloating outside of the bounds of the iTunes moniker.
Posted by: Brian Sweeting | October 12, 2005 at 09:02 PM
Keep it forever?
Well, that is, until the DRM decides you don't deserve to keep it anymore. How easy will it be to transfer your video to a different device? What happens when that new iPod is old and starts to fail? Will you be able to get the episode later? Or what if someone somehow comes up with something superior to the iPod? Will you be able to play it there?
Digital Restrictions Management is something scary, especially with how easily people have decided to go along with it.
Posted by: GBGames | October 13, 2005 at 08:25 AM
Well (a) you can transfer to multiple devices with Fairplay.
(b) you and I are hard core computer nerds filled with paranoia. I'm not saying the paranoia is unfounded, I'm just saying that it's not likely to be an issue. Apple aren't going to wake up one day and drive their company into the ground by screwing customers.
Posted by: Carson McComas | October 13, 2005 at 08:29 AM
I really like to poo-poo apple/mac.
But after this I simply can't. TV a la carte? Insane. You can bet your sweet bippy I'm going to be watchingg this one VERY closely - I plan on downloading my first episode of Lost VERY soon. I figure the $2 is a drop in the bucket compared to the time and energy it takes me to find and suck down a torrent.
THAT - and every time I've done it, I just sit there thinking: these idiots, don't they know that I'd gladly pay $2 to grab this from them?
So I'm on it. Big time.
Seriously, 'bout time somebody used their brain.
Posted by: Michael K. Campbell | October 13, 2005 at 08:36 AM
I am so frustrated that "media" is so busy cursing the darkness, that they can't find a match to light. 'Bout time someone lit the thing for them.
"Uh, here you go, and by the way, you can make more money this way, over here guys...."
I don't know if he melts my face, but I think I did see pigs in the weather forecast.
Posted by: Sam McComas | October 13, 2005 at 08:47 AM