Apple won't carry NBC shows on iTunes

Vogateer · Post by **Vogateer** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 6:26 am

http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/31/nbc- ... -contract/

Maybe they'll go to some other place to sell shows that you can buy and watch on linux, not that I'm holding my breath, or that I'll pay the kind of money they're asking for. How can you think $1.99 a show isn't enough? It's far too much per episode, particularly for the resolution you get.

Wally Balljacker · Post by **Wally Balljacker** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 10:25 am

So basically, NBC wanted more money and more DRM, and Apple wouldn't cooperate. So now NBC is left with only Xbox Live.

What's wrong with simply watching NBC for free on broadcast television? I guess I just don't understand the concept of paying money for stuff that flows freely over the airwaves.

snarkout · Post by **snarkout** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 10:39 am

Wally Balljacker wrote:So basically, NBC wanted more money and more DRM, and Apple wouldn't cooperate. So now NBC is left with only Xbox Live.

What's wrong with simply watching NBC for free on broadcast television? I guess I just don't understand the concept of paying money for stuff that flows freely over the airwaves.

So, with a tv and rabbit ears you can watch NBC for free? I'm totally out of the loop as far as what stations actually still broadcast - it was astonishingly few last time I checked. Either way, this'll probably bum my wife out since she actually buys tv shows from itunes - it might make my quest to build a fully functional myth box a little easier, though.

Vogateer · Post by **Vogateer** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 10:52 am

I can understand wanting to buy the shows, you get them commercial-free and can easily put them on a portable device. It's amazing how much podcasts and a portable music player have changed my commute, and if I start taking the bus to work instead of driving, video would be great, too. It's just an extension of the "I'll take my media when, where, and how I want it" for people who aren't geeks and don't know know how or won't bother to record and transcode.

Yeah, I get my TV with rabbit ears up in the attic. We just get the basics, NBC, CBS, Fox, PBS, CWT, and a few others, though ABC doesn't come in because I live in the direction of another broadcast station that's protected. Apparently you can shape a broadcast signal's strength depending on the direction. Sucks for me since I can't get my alma mater's football games. Even though we only get the over the air signals, the MythTV box records far more than we can watch. I do miss the History Channel and things like that, but I'm not paying the ridiculous price for cable.

Wally Balljacker · Post by **Wally Balljacker** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 10:56 am

NBC still broadcasts over the air, and I believe you can even watch NBC in high definition if you pick up an HD antenna. But I'm assuming most people nowadays have satellite, or a cable television/internet package from their ISP. It seems silly to pay for individual shows on iTunes when you're already paying a cable or satellite bill every month, especially with programs like MythTV out there that can record and save shows for free without DRM.

Vogateer · Post by **Vogateer** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 11:22 am

Oh yeah, thanks Wally, I didn't think to mention that. All my channels from the over the air signals give me HD content. Usually crystal clear, no DRM, free, and works great with MythTV. Not a bad combo. Also, PBS shows four subchannels, so there's four channels worth of content on that one station alone.