Published:
25-Jun-08
Apple has added television shows to the iTunes store (iTS) in Australia. Domestic content from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Seven Network and Nine Network is available alongside shows from The Walt Disney Company's ABC Studios, Disney Channel and MTV Networks. Episodes cost AU$2.99 (€1.80/US$2.85) each.
Our take...
The launch of TV shows on the Australian iTS marks the continuation of Apple's roll out of long form video outside its domestic market. The move comes three weeks after movies were added to the iTS in the UK and Canada.
Uptake of the video service may be limited due to the data caps imposed by Australian Internet Service Providers (ISPs). Telstra, the country's biggest ISP, currently offers DSL broadband packages with typical data caps ranging from 200MB to 25GB depending on subscription price. If the cap is exceeded the ISP may charge the subscriber an additional cost per MB or slow the user's broadband speed to 64kb/s. With hour-long TV shows on the iTS typically 400-500MB in size, users could quickly exceed their monthly data limit.
ISP iiNet is offering its broadband subscribers unmetered downloads from iTunes, exempting them from the monthly download quota. However, based on 1Q 2008 figures, iiNet subscribers make up only 5 per cent of the Australian broadband market.
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