2 October 2008 10:32 AM, PDT | From Studio Briefing - Film News | See recent Studio Briefing - Film News news
Santa Clara, CA-based Vudu, the online movie and TV rental company, said Wednesday that, beginning today (Thursday) it plans to bring "a broad array of mainstream content straight into the living room." sporting the new Hdx format, which offers 1080p high-definition resolution. "Hdx delivers twice the quality available from any Internet, or broadcast on-demand service," the company said, while acknowledging that the quality is not quite the equal of Blu-ray. Although Vudu says it will charge the same $3.99-$5.99 price for rentals whether users choose Hdx or its standard service, they will have to wait as long as four hours before they can begin viewing a movie, whereas movies in its standard format can be watched within seconds after purchase. Vudu requires a settop box that transmits movies directly to a TV set; no computer is necessary.
