Apple Brings Movies to the Cloud for UK, Intl iTunes Users
iTunes in the Cloud adds support for several more countries.
Apple has expanded support for its iTunes in the Cloud service to include movies for users in the UK, which means British users now have the ability to stream movies purchased on iTunes any time from any devices. Previously only available to users in the USA, Apple last week added support for those in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
According to the Guardian, Apple has said it has secured deals for content with major studios, including Warner Bros., and Universal, which will mean films like Bridesmaids and Sherlock Holmes will be available to the UK and Ireland. Now that iTunes users that buy movies will be able to stream them on an Apple device without downloading, Apple is competing with companies offering similar services in the UK, such as Amazon's LoveFilm, Netflix, 4oD, and Sky.
Apple launched iTunes in the Cloud alongside iCloud last summer. The service allows you to wirelessly synchronize iTunes Store purchases across multiple devices. This latest update means that users in the UK now have access to music, music videos, movies, TV shows, apps, and books via iTunes in the Cloud. Irish users do not yet have access to TV shows but have access to everything else. Canadian and Australian users also have access to everything, while New Zealand users do not have access to TV shows. In total, 155 countries have access to varying levels of iTunes in the Cloud. Only a handful of countries have support for all available services (music, music videos, movies, TV shows, apps, and books).
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Jane McEntegart is a writer, editor, and marketing communications professional with 17 years of experience in the technology industry. She has written about a wide range of technology topics, including smartphones, tablets, and game consoles. Her articles have been published in Tom's Guide, Tom's Hardware, MobileSyrup, and Edge Up.
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The Greater Good ReplyApple Brings Movies to the Cloud for UK, Intl iTunes Users
Until? Intel? What is Intl? -
back_by_demand Why is a cloud service regionalised anyway? Surely the whole point of a cloud service is so that your content is available anywhere. Should it really matter if I bought a movie in France but then cannot stream it if I am on holiday in Morocco? As long as the ISP I use or the data plan on my phone is happy to transfer the data, it should never matter where the data is coming from or going to.Reply -
eddieroolz back_by_demandWhy is a cloud service regionalised anyway? Surely the whole point of a cloud service is so that your content is available anywhere. Should it really matter if I bought a movie in France but then cannot stream it if I am on holiday in Morocco? As long as the ISP I use or the data plan on my phone is happy to transfer the data, it should never matter where the data is coming from or going to.Reply
Some places have copyright laws that undermines the foundation of cloud services. For instance, Japan has a law after JASRAC (the Japanese equivalent of cancerous RIAA) pressured the Diet to outlaw any copying, even legal ones.
Simply put, that's the reason for regionalization, I think.