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Zediva Ordered to Close its Virtual Doors and Pay up to the MPAA
Wed Nov 02, 2011 at 10:00 AM ETTags: Zediva, Lawsuits, MPAA (all tags)
DVD streaming was a bit of a gamble, and sadly for Zediva, it didn't pay off.
Zediva, for those that don't remember the very short lived site, was a DVD streaming service that let you rent a movie to watch online as if you were controlling a DVD player. You could bring up different audio tracks including commentaries and there was a plan to enable special features as well.
The method behind this tech was simple - you were actually controlling a DVD player. This process was, in the estimation of the folks at Zediva, completely legal even if they didn't pay licensing fees. The studios disagreed strongly and bam - lawsuit.
Now that the court case is finally settled, it turns out Zediva was on the wrong side of the law. They've been ordered to shut down operations and shell out a whopping $1.8 million to the MPAA.
Source: Engadget
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DVD Streaming Service Zediva Shut Down by Courts
Wed Aug 03, 2011 at 03:00 PM ETTags: Zediva, Streaming (all tags)
Anyone else surprised that it took this long?
The folks at Zediva had an interesting idea. Instead of buying the streaming rights to a movie and then letting customers select from a range of options, they would simply stream the DVD. This method of streaming gave them some options not available to Netflix - like the ability to watch special features.
Of course, as soon as the studios caught wind of this they had a strong reaction, and a very negative one at that. Streaming movies without paying licensing fees isn't exactly something that made them happy.
The courts sided with the studios, saying that Zediva was not a virtual video store as it claimed to be. Instead it was ruled that their service was along the lines of Netflix and Hulu and therefore Zediva would have to shut down.
There's no word on when this will occur, since at the time of this writing, the site is still up.
Source: Hacking Netflix
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MPAA Sues Zediva Over DVD Streams
Wed Apr 06, 2011 at 10:00 AM ETTags: MPAA, Zediva, Industry Trends (all tags)
Well of course they did. Zediva doesn't seem too worried though.
A few weeks ago we caught our first glimpse at the new movie streaming service Zediva. Though registration has been closed ever since, the site promises to offer some features that other streaming services can't - like access to commentary and special features. That's because they stream directly from the DVD.
This unique style of streaming is also why Zediva believes that they don't need to worry about licensing fees. They're only able to stream as many DVDs as they have, and when the limit has been reached that title is unavailable - just like a traditional brick and mortar store.
The Motion Picture Association of America sees things differently. They say that Zediva is attempting "rely on technical gimmicks in an effort to avoid complying with U.S. Copyright Law." The MPAA has filed suit in a California district court.
Source:
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Netflix Competitor Launches Without 28 Day Window
Thu Mar 17, 2011 at 04:15 PM ETTags: Zediva, Netflix, Streaming, Industry Trends (all tags)
Zediva, the newest contender, does things a little bit differently by streaming actual DVDs.
When you stream a movie from Netflix, Amazon, Vudu or any of the other streaming services available, you're watching a file that's stored on a massive server. When you stream a movie from Zediva, you're watching an actual DVD that's in an actual DVD player.
The latest Netflix competitor boasts that by using actual DVDs instead of digital media files they're able to do a few things that others can't. For starters, Zediva gives you access to movies on the day of release instead of making you wait for the 28 day window.
Even better, Zediva is making special features available. At the moment, you can only access subtitles and audio tracks, but that does give you access to commentary on DVDs that offer it. Other features will be made available in the future.
HD movies aren't yet available, thought Zediva does plan to expand to Blu-ray.
Source: Zediva
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