Distributing video content to consumers via a web site is a simple idea that has yet to be perfected. Many of the major online movie stores, including Movelink and Cinemanow, have onerous digital rights management (DRM) and software requirements that greatly limit what you can do with the movies you have bought.
EZTakes is a site that offers downloadable movies with a twist: there is no DRM. As far as I know, they are the only movie distribution service that offers DRM-free movies that you can burn to a DVD or watch on your computer. EZTakes offers a large library of independent movies, documentaries, IMAX movies, and foreign films ranging in price from $2 to $20.
The heart of the EZTakes experience is the Download Manager. Whenever you download a DVD from EZTakes, the EZTakes DVD Download Manager starts automatically. Once the movie is downloaded, you simply click a “Burn” button in the download manager to create a DVD to watch on a conventional DVD player. EZTakes will unlock the DVD for you and then burn it to a recordable DVD disc. The download manager will also burn optional backup discs, launch your default DVD player application to view the DVD on your PC, and let you save the DVD permanently on your hard drive.
I downloaded “Insignificant Other,” a supposed Hitchcockian thriller, to try out the service for myself. After downloading the 21.9 MB Download Manager, I was able to download the 2.96 GB movie in under 2 hours. The format of the movie is the standard DVD format with a VIDEO_TS folder so I was able to watch it using the popular VLC player. I also burned the movie to a DVD and watched it on my DVD player in the living room, which is a nice feature.
Good Points
After trying out EZTakes, the following features make the site a worthwhile storefront:
- No DRM
- Simple interface through the Download Manager
- One-click DVD burning
- Printable DVD cover art
- No restrictions on what playback software you can use
- No need to stream video from your computer to a TV
In my opinion, the feature that sets apart EZTakes from other movie download sites is that the movies you purchase do not have digital content protection. EZTakes uses its own watermarking technology to discourage unauthorized use of content. This is a great idea, though I am not sure how much of a deterrent it actually is in fighting piracy.
Bad Points
The main drawback of EZTakes is the lack of mainstream movies from the major movie studios. That is the price paid for not having digital content protection. I had a hard time finding movies that I knew or recognized. “Insignificant Others” was a cheesy B-movie in case you were wondering. A lot of the movies reminded me of things I would see Saturday afternoon on cable. I also think it is alittle odd that the site is running Adsense on it. I would think such a site would want to keep customers fixated on their own content.
Conclusion
EZTakes has potential as a site and a concept. The real question is whether they can compile a worthwhile collection of movies. The site is worth checking out though you might have a hard time finding a must-see movie. The good thing is that there is little risk in trying out EZTakes considering the following guarantee found on their website:
Our CEO’s personal guarantee states that first-time EZTakes customers can get a refund for any reason that prevents them from fully enjoying the movies they get from EZTakes. If there is ever any problem with the EZTakes service that prevents a customer from enjoying a movie, EZTakes will always refund all charges
Fri, Apr 27, 2007
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