WHICH IS FINE IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN POPULAR STUFF:

A Clever End Run Around the Movie-Streaming Gremlins (DAVID POGUE, 3/16/11, NY Times)

[W]hat if I told you that there’s a new streaming-movie service, Zediva.com, that eliminates every single one of those drawbacks? It lets you listen to the director’s commentary, turn on subtitles and change languages. It lets you enjoy your movie for two weeks instead of 24 hours, starting and stopping at will. It offers the 100 biggest movies for streaming on the very same day the DVD comes out. It sidesteps any meddling by the movie companies, HBO contracts and studio lawyers.

And here’s the best news of all — are you sitting down on your favorite movie couch? The price is only $2 for one movie or $1 if you buy a 10-pack. There’s no signup fee, no monthly fee, no hardware to buy.

Zediva’s secret is so outrageous, you may think it’s an early April Fool’s prank. But it’s no joke.

At its California data center, Zediva has set up hundreds of DVD players. They’re automated, jukebox-style. You’re not just renting a movie; you’re actually taking control of the player that contains the movie you want. The DVD is simply sending you the audio and video signals, as if it were connected to your home with a really, really long cable.

It’s kind of hilarious to think that this arrangement is the solution to the future of online movies: data centers stacked to the ceiling with DVD players. (And you think it’s hard for you to find the right remote on the coffee table?)

This sneaky setup neatly explains how you get those languages, subtitles and director’s commentaries.

It also explains why Zediva isn’t subject to the availability windows and restrictions that hobble the cheap movie services like Redbox and Netflix. Zediva is just buying dozens of copies of each popular movie on the day it comes out, and presto, it’s yours to rent by long distance.

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