The US VOD service Amazon.com has begun offering HD movie rentals and HDTV show purchases. The new HD service launches with more than 500 HD TV shows and movies from studios including Warner Bros. Entertainment, Sony Pictures, Paramount Pictures, MGM Studios, Universal Studios Home Entertainment, and Showtime Networks.
The over-the-top service is available on a large number of devices including PCs and Macs over the Web, TiVo DVRs, Sony Bravia Internet Video Link and Panasonic’s VieraCast-enabled HDTVs, and internet-connected devices such as the Roku box. The ‘vast majority’ of HD titles feature Dolby Digital 5.1 audio.
TV shows, available only for purchase at $2.99 each, include Californication, The Tudors and Gossip Girl. Movies are available for rental only and include Frost/Nixon, Twilight, Ghost Town and Yes Man. They cost $4.99 each, while older movies in HD such as The Sum of All Fears and Top Gun cost $3.99 for rental.
