Hollywood embraces the net

Guinevere is released for rental on the net

A major Hollywood film studio is to release a feature film for rental over the internet for the first time next week.

Guinevere, which was released in cinemas in 1999 to little acclaim, will be available to rent for 24 hours for a fee of $3.49 (£2.30) from 22 January.

The film is being made available by Miramax, a division of Walt Disney Films, while Sony and other film studios are expected to follow suit later in the year.

The romance, which stars Belfast actor Stephen Rea and Jean Smart, is the first of 12 films which Miramax, responsible for the Oscar-winning Shakespeare in Love, has agreed to release with SightSound.

Miramax were responsible for the Oscar-winning Shakespeare in Love

Major Hollywood studios are keen to avoid a situation where pirate copies of films are posted on the net.

"We can prevent for movies what Napster did for music," said Scott Sander, president and chief executive of SightSound, who have struck a deal with Miramax to distribute the film.

Napster, a music file-swapping service, allows users to download songs and albums often free of charge and, in some cases, without paying royalties to artists.

Romance

SightSound has released several independent films as well as episodes of South Park on the net.

Users have to download the movie to the hard drive of their computer which can take 30 minutes for those with a high-speed internet connection.

The film is encrypted and users have to pay again if they want to see the film after 24 hours have passed.

'Bigger movies'

The titles and release dates of the other 11 movies have not been confirmed.

"We're hoping Miramax will get a feel for what people are interested in on the net and that we'll get bigger and better movies with each release," said Mr Sander.

A spokesman for Sony said the Miramax announcement "reflected the high level of interest in accessing movies on the web".

Sony Pictures Digital Entertainment and Warner Bros are thought to be preparing a joint venture to launch their own internet films division.

Blockbuster, the leading video rental retailer, is also preparing plans for the internet age.