Life in the 21st century has its perks. The magic of the world-wide web is getting bigger, better and faster; much faster. Watching your favorite shows and movies from the comfort of your home is not only possible, rather it is extremely popular these days. The internet we take for granted every day hosts a lot of pirated content. Finding a legitimate website to stream movies can be tedious and frustrating to say the least. Numerous websites, which claim to host new Hollywood movies that can be viewed for free, are also host to viruses and malware. Nevertheless, there are a lot of better options on the World Wide Web that allow users to stream movies instantly. With Sky, you can watch your favorite movies if you have a fast and dependable broadband connection.
The World of Sky Deals
A lot of websites provide content on a one-time payment for each film you watch, or a monthly subscription. You can simply visit these video-on-demand sites and choose what you want to see. Most of these websites only provide “streaming services.” You will require a fast internet connection in order to have the best experience; Sky can give you just that. Of course if you prefer “downloading” them to watch at a later time, some content providers offer that too.
To elaborate more on the difference between the two services, let us say you visit your content provider’s website and choose a movie. Two things can happen:
1. You are redirected to a player and the movie starts playing almost instantly. You won’t have to wait for it to download; the content is being ‘streamed’. This is best for those who don’t want to wait. For example, you just got back from work and have some time to spare before going back to make that big presentation. Sit back, relax and maybe watch your favorite comedy show.
2. The other option is that the content will start downloading to your device. Once the download is complete, you can watch it any time you like. It is stored.
Where to Watch Movies Online
LOVEFiLM
Owned by Amazon, LOVEFiLM has over a million users and over 5000 films and television series, which offer streaming services on a personal computer, internet connected television, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 or iPad. You can subscribe for LOVEFilm for £4.99 a month with unlimited access, or make a one-off payment. There is also a mail-order service through which subscribers get rentals through the post and return the discs to receive another batch.
Netflix
This was introduced in the United States more than five years ago and has just been introduced in Great Britain and Ireland. With Netflix, you have a variety of local as well as international TV programs and movies waiting to be watched over smart TVs, tablets, smart phones or your personal computer. Monthly subscription costs £5.99 a month in the UK, or €6.99 a month in Ireland. The interesting thing about Netflix is that it helps you search for new films you might like. Recommendations are achieved via user ratings for the movies you have watched, compared with reviews from other users, to form suggestions of films of similar taste.
YouView
YouView combines a range of services to provide one complete bundle service for your home. Customers can get access to a library of online movies by buying a YouView box, and establishing a link with their broadband provider. It is also possible to get this service along with the broadband and phone package from TalkTalk or BT and this will also give you admittance to a lot of additional films and programmes.
iTunes
Perhaps the most well-known store in the world of digital entertainment is Apple’s iTunes store. It gives you to access to buy or rent movies for a specific number of days, after which the downloaded file will expire. With Apple’s library featuring extra interviews, trailers and photos along with hundreds of releases from popular studios, iTunes store has become immensely popular.
Film4oD
Based on Channel 4’s TV on-demand service 4oD, this service charge a fee for each movie and does not have a catch up service. The site is user friendly and gives you an option to watch movies offline; however the film selection is not as broad as that of LOVEFiLM. Different movies have a different cost associated with them, ranging from £2.99 to £3.99.
BBC iPlayer
With a valid TV licence, BBC iPlayer can be used to watch a week’s footage of BBC Television and radio programmes completely free of charge. You can also watch any movie that has been aired on different BBC channels in the past 7 days, including BBC One and BBC Two.
YouTube
Launched in the UK last year, YouTube’s films streaming services was previously exclusive to the US and Canada. The range of movies consists of classics, including the likes of Casablanca and Reservoir Dogs and numerous recent releases. The average cost per rental ranges from £2.49 to £3.49 with a 48 hour time period to watch the film once the payment has been processed.
Virgin Media
Virgin Media broadband and media television customers will know of the On-Demand service from the company. Users with an internet connection, notwithstanding if they are a Virgin client or not, can access their movie rental website showcasing numerous films to be streamed. The cost for a new release is usually £3.99 to rent. A fast internet connection is required, because no download option is available.
Sky Go
Sky allows its digital satellite clients to watch online films from the TV package that they have, quite similar to the Virgin Media service. If you are a Sky customer then you can buy the ‘Sky Movies pack’ in order to get transmission for four Sky Movie channels along with 500 movies, with no additional cost. A Sky Go monthly ticket is also available for those who wish to avail the service for a set period rather than as a full Sky Subscriber. Daily online Sky deals are coming soon.
Blinkbox
Blinkbox provides means to rent or buy movies of alternative genres. Essentially, it is for those of you who are interested in independent films or world cinema. The newest releases can cost a mere £1.99, which places Blinkbox among the cheapest online movie watching platforms. There are also about one thousand films that can be accessed absolutely free of charge.
Which films can you access on the web?
Different content-providers have a variety of films to offer their customers. Netflix has a lot of old releases, whereas LOVEFiLM features home entertainment for the whole family, on a pay-as-you-view basis. Usually you will find the movie you want to watch, however it is also important to note that there are still a lot of movies, which are not available. According to the Open Rights Group, excluding iTunes, merely 27% of the BAFTA best films from the period of 1960 to 2011 are available for rent on the net. The same research has also highlighted the issue that digital downloads cost almost the same as buying a DVD, albeit slightly less some of the time. Perhaps that is why subscription services seem to be stealing the market from those focusing on pay per movie.
Sam Jones enjoys relaxing after a long day at work by downloading and watching one of the latest movie releases. He found some great Sky deals by checking out websites like uSwitch. Now he can enjoy movies any time he likes.
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